The School of Magic: First Year
by PizzaPi314
Summary: Harry's first year at Hogwarts. Harry is more independent in this fic as well as a bit smarter and wiser. He discovers the wealth and possible allies his parents left him and puts them to use. Follows basic plot of HP Book 1 at first but deviates as the story progresses.
1. Harry's Letter

**Author's Note: First of all, obviously I don't own Harry Potter. It belongs to J. K. Rowling. I'm not making any money from this. I'm simply doing this because I need a creative outlet. Also, after reading a good amount of Harry Potter fanfiction, I felt like making one that matched my tastes and preferences in terms of plot, pairings, and personalities. Hopefully others you guys will enjoy reading this. Reviews are always appreciated, good or bad. Though I don't necessarily want bad reviews, I do appreciate being told how I can improve.**

**This story will be focused on a more independent and more intelligent Harry. He isn't necessarily a genius or a bookworm, but he does think more logically. It should be noted, though, that it takes him some time to gain obtain independence in the magical world. He needs a bit of help at first. He will have access to new things because of his ancestry and Potter heritage. In my opinion, my Harry has taken on some of the more redeeming qualities of the boy Tom Riddle. Anyway, I'm done rambling now. Enjoy my story!**

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Harry Potter was having the most magnificent dream. He was flying above London, admiring how everything looked from above. However, he himself wasn't flying. Instead, he was in the sidecar of a large, black motorcycle that soared through the sky as if it were driving upon the air itself. Harry, who had originally been too amazed by the view to notice, was startled to see that the motorcycle had another passenger. Driving the large motorcycle was an equally large man with long hair and a thick beard, which covered his face in a way that prevented Harry from identifying the him easily. Overcoming his surprise, Harry reached out to tap the man on the shoulder, meaning to ask who he was and what they were doing on a motorcycle high above the ground. He had just brushed the tip of the man's overcoat when a loud voice startle him.

"Wake up! Now!"

Harry, startled, blinked as the magical landscape before him faded and became the blurry outline of a wooden ceiling coming down in steps. He was back in his cupboard.

"Hurry up! Don't you dare fall back asleep!"

Harry sighed and reached for his glasses. His vision focused, but he wondered if this sight was really any better. He sat up and tried the door. Finding it unlatched, he came out to find an angry Aunt Petunia glaring at him. With his head down, he walked over to the kitchen and started making breakfast, one of the many chores required of him. When breakfast was made and relatives had taken their helpings, Harry was permitted to sit down and enjoy his own meager breakfast. Meanwhile, his relatives had begun discussing Dudley's school, which he would be going to in a few day's time.

"Nonsense, Petunia! I was never hungry while I was at Smeltings! They treat their students right and help them grow into the men they will become! Aren't a good enough example of Smeltings's success?" Uncle Vernon chuckled, amused with what he considered a humorous joke.

"I'm just worried about how Dudley will adjust," mused Aunt Petunia. "I've heard that every boy has chores he has to do. My little Dinky Duddydums shouldn't be forced to work himself to the bone!"

"I'll just make the other boys help me, Mum. I can be very convincing."

Harry fought the urge to crack up as Dudley contorted his pig-like face into what he must have thought to be a very persuasive expression. He knew that laughing, however, would result in punishment and continued staring at his plate as he happily enjoyed his meal. His happiness came to an end when the mail arrived, causing Dudley to reach across the table and smack Harry's head with some stick and yell at him to get the mail. As his uncle and aunt expressed their happiness with Dudley's "persuasiveness," Harry grudgingly got up and went to get the mail.

When Harry arrived at the door, he was surprised to find a letter out of place amidst the bills, tabloid magazines, and other mail of his relatives. Lying on the mat and bearing the seal of an unknown but impressive crest was a letter addressed to him! Not only did it have his name and address, but it even mentioned his cupboard. Harry was flabbergasted. This person knew who he was (few did), and they even knew which room he slept in. Harry had no idea who had written to him or why, but he had a feeling it was important, and important people were not to be ignored.

"Hurry up boy! I want my mail before I leave for work! I don't have all day!"

Uncle Vernon's shouts brought Harry back to reality. As much as he would have liked to take this letter and read it right away, he knew his relatives might not be too keen on him receiving a letter. They worked furiously to make sure he was not associated with them in any way. His aunt and uncle might upset the person who wrote to him or claim he didn't live with them. Harry also wouldn't put it past Dudley to "accidentally" steal his letter and flush it down the toilet (or at least something along those lines). His mind made up, Harry quickly hid the letter under the doormat. He would wait until he was alone to see what this was all about.

Harry's chance came a couple days later. His relatives were off to take a tour of Smeltings's. His uncle would want to catch up with all his old schoolmates, and Harry felt confident that he would have the day to himself. He opened the envelope and found a few folded papers. He looked at one and was astonished at what he found:

Dear Mr. Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on September 1. We await you owl by no later than July 31. Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

_Deputy Headmistress_

(from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)

Harry had no idea what to think. He was under the impression that a school was interested in him, though he had no idea how he had gotten into their records. However, he had never heard of a school by the name of "Hogwarts." It seemed an odd name. Even odder was its mention of Witchcraft and Wizardry. That was probably a mascot, though, or maybe some sort technical term he wasn't familiar with. Even with his uncertainties, though, Harry was overjoyed. This could be his chance to escape the Dursleys and their influence. His spirits dropped, however, when he thought of the books and equipment. The Dursleys wouldn't buy him a second-hand schoolbook, much less pay for him to go to what was clearly an important school. He didn't even know what to do to "owl" this Deputy Headmistress and explain the situation. Tossing the paper on his bed, he noticed more writing on the back. It said that if he were in need of an owl he was to tap the paper and say his name. Harry did so, and less than five minutes later he noticed an owl standing by the kitchen window holding out its leg. Clearly this was some sort of trained bird that would deliver his mail, though Harry couldn't understand what was wrong with the post office. He sat at the table and wrote his letter:

Dear Deputy Headmistress,

My name is Harry Potter and I received a letter from your school. I would be very happy to attend, but I don't think my guardians will be willing to pay my tuition or other expenses. Is there some sort of educational assistance fund that could aid me? Also, why does your school make note of Witchcraft and Wizardry? What does that mean? Are they mascots or philosophies of some sort? Please let me know if there is anything that can be done. Also, if you must send me your response by trained owl, please do so today before 7pm. If this is not possible please have it placed under the outside welcome mat so my guardians won't see it.

Sincerely,

Harry Potter

Harry gingerly held the letter out the owl, which swiftly snatched the letter and flew away. Watching it go, Harry sighed and hoped that things would work out.

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**Author's Note: Well, that's that's the first chapter. Sorry for the lack of action and shortness, but I didn't want to just rush into the story. You can consider this a bit of a prologue. Hopefully it didn't bore you too much! Things should accelerate from here. Please let me know what you think by leaving a review and letting me know if I did any good or not. Thanks for reading! The next chapter should hopefully be up in the next day or so (or earlier if I get the inspiration).**


	2. An Informative Visit

**Author's Note: Thank you to all readers and reviewers for my last chapter. It took a bit longer than I hoped, but here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it, and please let me know what you think! Once again, I don't own Harry Potter, blah, blah, blah, etc.**

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Having sent his letter to the Deputy Headmistress of this Hogwarts school, though through a rather peculiar means of delivery, Harry Potter went back to read the rest of what had been in the envelope he had received. He had been a bit confused by the letter's mention of "Witchcraft and Wizardry," but he was fairly sure that this was just a minor detail. Harry figured that he would have most of the necessary materials already. Pens and paper were easy enough to come across. His school uniform could probably be made using old clothes or bought second-hand. The course books would probably be available second-hand as well. All in all, Harry thought that almost all the equipment he would need could be gotten fairly cheaply and easily. A scholarship could be all he needed to make this amazing opportunity a reality. When he picked up the list of books and equipment, however, he found that he was quite wrong.

Any misconceptions that this school was relatively normal were quickly and utterly destroyed. His uniform looked to be plain black robes. Where was he to find those? Did these students dress in bath robes all day? The winter cloak at least seemed a bit normal, but the pointed hat certainly wasn't. Was he supposed to walk around all day wearing some sort of dunce cap? Finally, protective gloves were needed (Harry was a bit nervous as to what they would be needed for), and they supposedly had to be made of dragon hide. Harry hadn't even been aware that dragons existed (and he wasn't sure if he believed it now or not), and now he had to find gloves made of dragon skin!

Harry Potter was certainly not like his relatives in their beliefs on the normal and ordinary. The Dursleys had tried to tried to make him as Muggle-like as they were, but they hadn't succeeded. Words like "magic" and "flying motorcycles" did not bother Harry at all; he had dreamed about both on numerous occasions. He had simply never given thought to the idea that these things could exist outside the realm of dreams. Now, however, this letter pointed to just the opposite.

As Harry read further down the list, the materials became even more unorthodox. All the books seemed to be revolved around magic. What he assumed to be a magic wand was even on the list! When he had finished reading the list, perplexed as to why a first year would want a broomstick, he had come up with three theories. The first, which seemed quite unlikely, was that this was some sort of huge practical joke. No one would go through all this trouble for a gag, though, especially not for him. The second was that these people were quite mad. This didn't seem right either because the letters he had gotten had been quite clear and orderly, not like what one would expect from a person or persons who had gone insane. The third theory, which was both the most logical and the most preposterous, was that this was all very, very real. It was both terrifying and exciting.

Just as Harry was beginning to believe that maybe, just maybe, magic could exist, he heard a very distinct popping noise followed by the sound of someone knocking at the door. Harry went to the door and saw through the peephole a woman standing on the front step. She was an older woman, with a very tight bun, and she had a very piercing gaze. It was almost as if she were looking directly at him, and Harry felt himself growing a bit nervous. Why was this woman here? Should he pretend that no one was home?

"Mr. Potter, if you wish to continue staring, might I suggest that you let me inside? I do not want any neighbors staring, and I assume that your relatives would not want to hear of my appearance from them."

Harry, feeling a little embarrassed, opened the door for the woman. Without hesitation she walked briskly inside, inspecting the interior of number four, Privet Drive as she did so. Harry noticed her frown when she saw the interior of the cupboard under the stairs, but she said nothing of it.

"Pardon me," said Harry, not wanting to be rude, "but who are you and how do you know my name? I wasn't aware that anyone outside the Dursleys and some local people in the neighborhood knew who I was." Harry didn't want to mention the letter he had received, not knowing who this person was or if there was any connection.

"Ah, forgive my abruptness Mr. Potter. You may call me Professor McGonagall. Before you ask, I could see a question forming on your lips, I am indeed the same one that recently contacted you about Hogwarts."

"Actually, I was wondering if by the title you gave that you felt confident that I would be attending. You see, I mentioned this in my letter, but I haven't got any money, and the Dursleys certainly won't pay for me to go. Plus I haven't got a way to find any of the required items. They don't sell them in any shops around here, do they? They seem a bit, well, odd."

Professor McGonagall looked very troubled at this. "Do you mean to tell me, Mr. Potter, that you have no idea what Hogwarts is? From what you said in your letter, it doesn't seem like you do. But you don't know anything? About our world? Your world? Your parents' world?"

Harry was intrigued. "I know some about a world, but I have a feeling you're talking about one different from the ordinary one. If that's the case, then I don't know anything about it. At all. And are you saying my parents were a part of this world?"

At this the Professor sat down slowly on a nearby couch, emitting a soft sigh. "I was afraid of this. For heaven's sake, I warned Albus of these relatives of yours. They're the worst kind of Muggles." Seeing Harry's confusion, she added, "A term for ordinary humans. Ones who are not a part of our world. To the point, though. You are correct. I was not speaking of the Muggle world, which you have been forced into. The world I am speaking of is the magical one. As you may have deducted from Hogwarts's name and your list of equipment, Hogwarts is a school of magic. It will teach you how to harness your magic and how to use it well."

Slightly enlightened and not as surprised as he would have been a few days ago, Harry was still confused. "But Professor," he asked, "what magic are you talking about? I don't ever remember noticing I had magic powers."

At this Professor McGonagall smiled. "Have you ever made something happen, while being under strong emotions, that you couldn't explain?" After she saw a look of comprehension on Harry's face, she continued. "That is called accidental magic, and it is especially common in young wizards and witches when they are angry or scared and are still getting used to the growing magic inside of them. At Hogwarts, you will learn to control this inner magic, as well as study the past and present of the magical world." As an example of this, she set a table on fire with a flick of a stick that must have been her magic wand. With another flick the fire was gone and the table looked no different.

Harry was amazed. Any doubts he had harbored were extinguished after the skillful display of what could only be described as magic. It was if someone had opened a locked door in Harry's mind. He remembered the time he had regrown his hair overnight and the time he had suddenly appeared on the school roof. Why had he never given much thought to those times and the others? It all made sense, and he wondered what he would be able to do with the proper training. But another nagging thought had entered his mind.

"Professor, you said that this world included my parents. They didn't really die in a car crash did they?"  
The professor's face grew very grave, and, if Harry had been looking, he might have noticed that a tear had formed in her normally intimidating gaze. "Yes, Harry. You're right. I'm not sure if I'm the most...qualified...to tell you of this, but you are correct. Lily and James were students of mine. They were in my house: Gryffindor. At the time of your parent's death, when you were about one year old, there was a very terrible, Dark wizard. His name...well, what he called himself, was...Voldemort." McGonagall shuddered involuntarily as she spoke the name. "One night, he came to the house you and your parents were staying in. He killed your father and mother. He tried to kill you too, but for some reason his curse couldn't. All it did was leave that scar you have on your forehead. Something must have happened to him because he has not been seen or heard of since. You were found in the wreckage of your house with just that scar and brought to your relatives. The wizarding world rejoiced in...You-Know-Who's..._supposed_ death, proclaiming you the Boy Who Lived."

Harry was stunned. He had never expected something like this. All his life he had been told that his parents, drunk and insane, had gotten themselves into a fatal car crash, leaving him to be forced upon his relatives. Now that he knew the truth, Harry was at least comforted in the knowledge that his parents had been good people who had died in a much more honorable way. But why was he alive? Professor McGonagall didn't seem to know. From what it sounded like, no one did. Now here he was, made out to be some sort of hero for the past decade, and he hadn't even known. He hadn't even knowingly done anything! What frightened him, though, was the talk of a Dark Wizard. A criminal in the wizard world would be far more dangerous than a "Muggle" one. Also, Harry had caught from the professor's tale that she didn't necessarily believe that this "Voldemort" was gone for good. That was a troubling thought indeed.

Seeing Harry's troubled expression and his silence, Professor McGonagall worried that this serious topic was bringing the boy into too much too soon. Who knew how much suffering and neglect this child had already been put through in his relatively short life. She decided to lighten the mood a bit. "The reason I came here in the first place is to help you buy your supplies. Most Muggle families need help with this, and Muggles can't get into Diagon Alley by themselves."

"But Professor, I haven't got any money!" Harry didn't understand how she didn't seem to care about this.

"Exactly. That's why you're going to visit Gringotts. You didn't think all your parents' money just went with the house, did you? That's why you need to visit Gringotts, the Wizard Bank. There should be plenty of gold in their vault to put you through school."

Harry was ecstatic at this and ready to leave immediately, but he was forced to leave a note for his relatives in the chance that he didn't return until later. Harry insisted that they wouldn't care at all, but it wasn't any use. Finally, Professor McGonagall had Harry take her arm. He suddenly had the sensation of being shoved through a small tube, and then just as suddenly he found himself in an abandoned alleyway on the streets of London.

Professor McGonagall took Harry through the city before coming to stop near a small, dirty-looking pub named "The Leaky Cauldron." Before they entered, Harry was instructed to put on a cloak the professor had given him. "It's so that you won't get unwanted attention while we're here," she had explained. "Many people would recognize you because of how much you look like James. Those that didn't would at least notice the scar." Harry had been thankful. He didn't want people crowding him and talking how famous he was. He didn't want the attention unless he purposefully made it possible. His fame could possibly be very helpful in the near future. As Harry donned the cloak, McGonagall twirled her wand and changed her attire to robes and a pointed hat, which Harry now recognized as normal attire for witches and wizards. He hoped he didn't look foolish wearing them, though.

Entering the pub, Harry looked around trying to try and spot anything that seemed magical. Sadly, nothing seemed more than ordinary. The interior looked as run-down as the exterior. There were a few older people sitting in chairs talking as a bald bartender cleaned some glasses. They walked through the bar into a disheveled courtyard, Professor McGonagall nodding to a younger, nervous looking man wearing a turban.

"That was Professor Quirrell," she explained in an undertone once they were out of earshot. "He teaches Defense against the Dark Arts." Harry thought the man looked a bit nervous and fidgety for one who taught defense against bad magic, but she didn't question it.

Coming to the end of the courtyard, Professor McGonagall took out her wand and tapped a certain brick three times. As she stepped back, the brick and its neighbors started to quiver. As they quivered, a hole started forming. It grew and grew until Harry was looking at a very large archway. Through the archway, Harry could see a long stone street adorned with many brightly colored shops. There were people of all ages dressed similarly to McGonagall. Children were playing and pressing their faces against window panes, admiring toys, treats, and broomsticks. Adults were haggling, laughing, and chatting with one another. Harry spotted two elderly men playing what looked like chess, yet he couldn't see the pieces very well because they were too far away. In all his life, Harry didn't think he had ever come to a place that seemed more welcome and friendly. It was as if he were meant to be here. No one seemed annoyed by his presence or started treating him differently. He felt the urge to look in every shop and examine the merchandise of the magical world, hoping to fit a crash course of "Magical Life 101" into one day. For once it seemed like Harry might be able to have some fun. Seeing Harry's awe, Professor McGonagall smiled.

"Welcome," she exclaimed (with a bit more enthusiasm than she may have intended), "to Diagon Alley!"

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**Author's Note: Well, there's the next chapter! I hope you enjoyed it. I wanted to give Gringotts and Diagon Alley their own chapter without introductory stuff in the beginning, so sorry about the ending. Anyway, please leave a review letting me know what you think! More will hopefully be up soon!**


	3. Hagrid and Hermione

**Author's Note: (I no own HP. JKR does.) Thank you to all my readers and reviewers! I've gotten some great suggestions already. Don't hesitate to let me know what you think! I'm trying to spend a decent amount of time with Diagon Alley; I feel like a lot of its potential, even for just interesting stuff, wasn't harnessed in the books. Anyway, here's my next chapter. Enjoy! **

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As Professor McGonagall took Harry, still wearing his cloak, through the streets, Harry wished he had another pair of eyes. There was just so much to see. Harry didn't even understand half the things he saw, but the sights were all the more amazing because of that. He felt like a child being exposed to the world for the first time (which, in a sense, he was). Harry spotted an Apothecary selling all sorts of wondrous and strange things, though the smell wasn't the most attracting. On display in the widows were jars of eyes, strange bugs, and even what Harry thought looked to be a unicorn horn. As he was thinking of what other fairy tale creatures existed, if unicorns were in fact real, he was yanked on the arm by Professor McGonagall.

"Please try and save your sight-seeing for another time, Mr. Potter. I am on a tight schedule, and I don't want to waste time trying to find you after you've stopped or wandered somewhere. This is one of the busiest times of the day." McGonagall sighed. She might as well have been talking to the street.

Harry tried to stay focused. He didn't stop in the middle of the street again. However, he couldn't refrain from eying all the marvelous shops. A shop called Eeylops Owl Emporium looked to sell owls as pets. Harry thought that an owl seemed like a strange pet, but he remembered that owls had significance for witches and wizards: they delivered mail. Perhaps these owls were more intelligent than normal ones. Another shop, Quality Quidditch Supplies, was hard to see with all the boys and men crowded in and around it. Whatever Quidditch was, possibly a sport or game, it was certainly popular with wizards. Harry made sure to add Quality Quidditch Supplies to his growing mental list of shops he would have to visit. Harry was just about to ask Professor McGonagall when they would have time to look around when a loud, deep voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Oui there! Hello Professor McGonagall! Hey, is that-"

They speaker was cut off as McGonagall hastily shushed him and pulled him and Harry to a secluded alleyway near the street. Harry could see now that the man who had greeted them was very large. Large hardly even did him justice. He was practically a giant among men! His face was hard to see through his long hair and long beard, but his glinting eyes could be made out. Professor McGonagall was having a quiet conversation with the man, but his voice carried and Harry caught snippets of what was going on. He pretended to eye the windows of a nearby shop called Flourish and Blotts, which seemed to sell a wide and interesting variety of books on magic and the magical world.

"Blimey, I knew it was Harry the moment I saw him with you! Probably helped that Professor Dumbledore told me he might be here." The man chuckled.

"Hagrid, really, you can't just come over to us and start shouting. You draw enough attention as it is. We don't want the whole crowd realizing who's in their midst."

"Just thought I'd, you know, say hello an'-"

"Hagrid, I'm sure once he gets to Hogwarts there will be plenty of time to 'say hello,' but now is really not the time."

"Well, I also got Harry's key to Gringotts. Thought maybe I could go with him an' help him."

"Hagrid, why do you have his key?"

"Dumbledore gave it to me to give to him."

"But why did...oh never mind. Surely this isn't the only reason you're here?"

"Well, I was also supposed to pick up the...uh...the You-Know-What thing..."

After the mention of this unknown item, the adults talked so quietly that Harry hadn't a clue what they were saying. It had been a very informative conversation nonetheless. This man, Hagrid, knew Professor McGonagall and seemed to work at Hogwarts. He had a key for Harry to use at the Wizard Bank. And, the most interesting of all, he also had to pick up some important, secretive item from Gringotts while he was there. Harry noticed the adults glancing at him occasionally, and he felt it would seem odd if he didn't appear slightly interested. He made an effort to look like he was trying to hear them but doing a very poor job about being subtle about it. Harry had a lot of experience eavesdropping and acting thanks to his life with the Dursleys. Being able to listen in on conversations could give him an early warning if things were about to get ugly. Pretending to be naïve and innocent had also been mandatory skills for Harry while he grew up. At least living with the Dursleys had helped him with something. Finally, the two adults decided to return their attention back to Harry.

"Harry," Professor McGonagall explained, "this is Rubeus Hagrid, though he prefers to be called simply Hagrid. He is the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts."

"Hi" said Harry. "Nice to meet you. What do you do around the grounds at Hogwarts? Are there magical creatures like unicorns there?" Harry instantly regretted asking this question as Hagrid began to passionately speak of the amazing creatures that supposedly lived on the Hogwarts grounds. As much as Harry was interested in magical creatures, Hagrid was talking at a pace and comprehension level way to high for him to understand anything. Thankfully, he was saved when Professor McGonagall's intimidating gaze fell on Hagrid, who realized that he might have been straying a bit too far from the subject they were supposed to be discussing.

"Sorry 'bout that," he said a little sheepishly. "I just really like them beasts. Anyways, I came to see you because I recognized you and thought you might be headed to Gringotts. I've got a key for you to get in to yer money vault, Harry, and since I'm going there anyway I thought you could join me."

"Sure," Harry agreed brightly. He noticed that Professor McGonagall didn't seem all too thrilled about the idea. Hagrid probably wouldn't share her obligation to a tight schedule and brisk pace with no distractions. Harry sensed an opportunity to possibly get some time to explore Diagon Alley.

"Professor, I'll be find with Hagrid. Even if he can't keep me concealed, he looks perfectly suited for crowd control if the need arises. If you've got other things you need to do, don't hesitate to go get them done because of me." Harry hoped it didn't sound too obvious that he was trying to get rid of her. She had to at least acknowledge, though, that Harry probably wouldn't get around to much sight-seeing if she was with him the whole time.

"Very well, Mr. Potter." McGonagall smiled. The boy had to have some fun. He'd have plenty of time for rules and schedules at Hogwarts. "You may go with Hagrid. I will meet back with you at six in the Leaky Cauldron to take you back to your relatives. Enjoy yourself, but I expect you to be on your best behavior. That goes for you too Hagrid." At that she turned and walked back toward the archway entrance.

Harry and Hagrid smiled at each other. "Why don't we go to Gringotts first," suggested Hagrid, handing Harry a small golden key to unlock his vault. "That way if you see somethin' in the shops you like, you can buy it right away."

"Sounds good to me," replied Harry as they walked down the street. As they walked, Hagrid explained Wizard currency to Harry.

"I bin told of yer livin' in a Muggle family and not knowin' how the magical world works, so I figured before we got to the bank you should know how our money works. There's three coins: bronze Knuts, silver Sickles, and gold Galleons. There are 29 Knuts to a Sickle and 17 Sickles to a Galleon. It's simple enough!"

Harry nodded, but wondered what was wrong with simpler, easier numbers like 15 and 30. It didn't really matter, though, as long as he remembered the numbers. Harry looked around for any sign of Gringotts. It didn't take long. Farther down the street he saw a snow-white building way taller than the little shops. As they got closer, though, Harry could see in front of the bronze doors a short, clever-looking being with long fingers and a pointed beard. Startled by what appeared to be something that wasn't human, Harry looked questioningly at Hagrid. Seeing Harry's expression, Hagrid explained.

"That there's a goblin. Their kind run Gringotts. Perfect for the task. The whole lot of 'em love money and profit. No one who's smart would try an' steal wealth from a goblin. You'd have to be mad to try an' rob Gringotts. Safest place in the world for stuff, except maybe Hogwarts. Oh yeah, them goblins love all their customs and honor. Whatever you do, don't try an' steal from a goblin, and don't insult him."

Intrigued, Harry followed as Hagrid walked up to the goblin. Hagrid bowed to the goblin, who bowed back, and then began conversing with him in a low tone. The goblin nodded, looked at Harry, nodded again, and went inside the building. Hagrid turned to Harry.

"He says I can't take any others with me when I do my...business. You can wait for me if you like, or you can go by yourself while I'm gone. If you want that, we can meet in 'bout an hour, maybe at noon back at the entrance."

"I can go by myself," assured Harry. It would be nice to be by himself for a little bit anyway. Hagrid motioned for Harry to come inside and Harry did so.

Harry was immediately impressed when he entered the bank. He found himself in a large hall of marble. There was a long counter, and many goblins were seated behind it. Some were writing down notes, some were weighing and counting coins, and others were examining precious stones and ancient-looking artifacts. There were many doors around the hall, and people were being shown in and out. Harry glimpsed Hagrid's massive figure going through one of the doors. Harry, wanting to withdraw some money as quick as possible, saw a sign entitled "Quick Withdrawals"and headed there. When he reached the goblin at the counter, he was asked to present his key, which he did. The goblin fit the key into a chest that Harry felt sure was magical, turned the key, and opened the chest. He took out a piece of parchment and began explaining things to Harry.

"With the Quick Withdrawals method, you can use a key (which only works with the rightful owner) to take a limited amount of gold from your vault, usually specified when the vault was first put into use. You say how much you want, we give you some gold on hand here, and we take that amount out from your account. This key is for a Vault entitled "Harry's School Fund." It was originally owned by Lily and James Potter, but control has been passed on to you, Mr. Potter. The vault has only been available for withdrawal since July 31st of this year, which only passed a few days ago. The vault contains 36,167 Galleons. Of that, 35,000 Galleons are strictly for your seven-year tuition at Hogwarts with 5,000 payed directly to it annually, 750 are for school supplies and spending money, and 417 are accumulated interest over the 11 years the gold has been in Gringotts. This you may use for whatever purpose you like. To withdraw, simply sign this parchment and you will receive a bag with a charm that can only be opened by yourself and will contain the amount of money you chose to withdraw. Your first withdrawal is understood to be used for school supplies and 750 Galleons are the maximum you may withdraw. After a month, and then every month, you may withdraw 75 Galleons from the interest earned."

Harry was amazed that his parents had left him this much money. To think that he had been worried about tuition and school supplies! He wouldn't have to buy anything second-hand, and he had 417 extra Galleons that weren't limited to school. Harry signed for the 750 Galleons and was handed a small, silky drawstring bag about the size of a paper lunch bag. It didn't feel any heavier than a sack lunch, but when Harry opened it he found he could stick his whole arm down, feeling the piles of gold within. Amazed, Harry cheerfully strode out of the bank. His trip had only taken 15 minutes. He still had 45 minutes to browse and shop before he met with Hagrid. Harry put the bag into a large pocket on the inside of his cloak and decided to first stop at the bookstore Flourish and Blotts.

As he walked in, Harry could smell the inviting scent of fresh paper and new books. He looked at a small map near the front door. There were sections for books about dragons, mermaids, and vampires. There were fairy tales, diaries, and biographies of famous witches and wizards. Harry made his way over to a section the map indicated was for school books. Arriving, he saw two of the required books, _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) _and _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ prominently displayed on the shelves. Harry took these books and the others required on his list and carried the large stack toward where the payment area was. On his way, he saw a shelf advertising a book on Hogwarts: _Hogwarts, A History_. Interested in learning more about the school he would be going to, Harry made his way over to the shelf. His large stack of books, however, prevented him from seeing the person standing between him and the shelf . The person was intently studying the very same book Harry was now interested in and was oblivious to the outside world. When Harry realized his mistake, it was too late.

Books tumbled to the floor (his and his victim's). Harry hastily apologized numerous times, but the girl (Harry noticed the person was a girl) didn't seem upset as they picked up their fallen books. Harry couldn't help but study the girl as she picked up books. She had a head full of bushy, brown hair and slightly large front teeth. She also had all the same books as Harry and quite a few extras. Harry would have introduced himself and asked who the girl was, as she was clearly starting Hogwarts this year as well, but she was already speaking. It seemed the hood of his cloak had slipped and his identity was in plain sight.

"...I can't believe that Harry Potter's in my year. True, I figured, based on the age you were when you beat You-Know-Who, but one can never be sure. You're in _Modern Magical History_ and _The Rise _and _Fall of the Dark Arts_! I just can't believe this is how I meet you. Honestly, it's just a good thing my parents didn't see! Sometimes it seems like they like to poke fun at me, and their humor isn't the most witty. I remember one time I got back from the movies and had all kinds popcorn stuck in my teeth. They're dentists, you see, and they-"

The girl suddenly stopped talking, flustered and blushing, as if she had said more than she should have. Harry realized that she'd talked about the movies, which he didn't think wizards and witches had. The wizarding world seemed a bit old fashioned when compared to the Muggle one. And her parents were dentists, she had said?

"Wait, if your parents are dentists...who are y-"

"I suppose it's only a matter of time," sighed the girl, "before everyone finds out anyway. My parents are Muggles. I'm a first generation witch. I'm Muggle-born. I understand if you don't want to..." The girl seemed a bit embarrassed and didn't finish.

"Why should I care who your parents are?" asked Harry. "I was raised by Muggles. I didn't even know about the magical world or my fame until this morning! It's almost nicer if you've grown up in Muggle society too. You're probably one of the few that would understand me if I talked about electricity or movies or the like." At this, the girl smiled. It seemed that she had been quite worried about being Muggle-born.

"Well, that's a relief, though I somehow doubt that everyone will share your view. Anyway, my name's Hermione Granger. You really only found out today?"

At that, Harry began to tell his new-found friend about how he had received his letter and been quickly brought into the wizarding world. Hermione seemed a bit disapproving of his relatives, but she didn't say anything. Finally, he told her about finding out that his parents had left him a large amount of gold and how weird it felt to be famous.

"Well, it sounds as if you've had a very interesting day," commented Hermione. "I guess it would feel weird to suddenly find out you're famous for something you don't even remember. I've already done my shopping, I'm just browsing and reading my textbooks here. The store aides are so helpful! I can help you buy your supplies! Let me just go tell my parents quick. I think they're trying to find a "Magical World For Dummies" book or something similar, though I doubt they'll find anything."

Harry was pulled by Hermione to another section of Flourish and Blotts where he saw two adults looking rather confused while browsing the shelves. Hermione ran up to them, introducing an embarrassed Harry, the famous Boy Who Lived, to her very confused parents. Harry tried to remember their names and appearances, but an enthusiastic and rushed Hermione left Harry in a daze most of the way through introductions. Though they didn't care much about his fame, which Harry appreciated, they were very happy to have found someone else who had grown up in the Muggle world. They seemed a bit thankful that they weren't the only ones who were struggling to keep up with all the new revelations. Hermione rushed Harry to the payment area to buy his books, eager to help him get his school supplies. He had just stacked his books on the counter, gotten the gold from his money bag and payed for the books, and was about to put the bag away when Hermione stopped him.

"Harry, where did you get that bag?"

"At Gringotts. I told you. I stopped there and did a withdrawal. They gave me this bag to carry my gold in. Do you want one? This one's quite useful." Hermione shook her head.

"That's not what I meant Harry, and you forgot to mention you had a key! What kind of withdrawal did you make?"

Harry was intrigued. Why would this matter? What mattered about the key? Hermione seemed very bright, and had clearly already read books on Gringotts, but what did it matter? A bank account was a bank account. Did it matter how he withdrew the money?

"Hermione, it was just a Quick Withdrawal. I don't see-"

Harry wasn't sure if this was good or bad because Hermione suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled him out the door, instructing her parents to take Harry's books on the way out.

"We have to go back to Gringotts!"

"Why? I'm supposed to meet Hagrid at the entrance soon, but what do we need to do?"

"You can tell Hagrid you need more time. Maybe he can get lunch. Regardless, we need to go to Gringotts."

"Hermione, why-"

"Harry, the Quick Withdrawals Method is the only part of the bank that uses keys. It's mainly for small trust funds and school funds. But that isn't your family vault or your parents' vault! From the books you were mentioned in, it sounded like the Potters were an important family in the Wizarding World."

"So what you're saying is that vault I made the withdrawal from was just the tip of the iceberg." Harry was very interested. He had had no reason to think that his parents were important people or that they had left him more than he knew.

"Exactly! Plus, Gringotts performs way more services than those of a Muggle bank! I'm guessing you didn't take advantage of those either."Hermione was glad that Harry had finally caught up.

"You're right. All I did was get my money. Well then, let's get to Gringotts and find out how much I'm worth!"

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**Author's Note: Well, thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. Sorry for cutting off the way I do, but I'm trying to post chapters once I get around 2500-3500 words. I don't want the chapters to be huge, and the bigger they are the longer it takes to post them. Anyway, please leave a review and say what you think. Suggestions are always welcome as well. I have the general plot thought out, but I'm open to ideas. It's also nice to know what you guys want from this story. Until next time!**


	4. Gringotts

**Author's Note: (I don't own anything related to Harry Potter.) Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who read and reviewed my work. It's always nice to receive feedback from you guys. It feels good knowing that what I'm writing is being read and enjoyed by other people, not just myself. Here's the next chapter for you. Enjoy!**

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As they quickly walked toward Gringotts, something occurred to Harry. He was surprised he hadn't thought of it until now.

"Hermione, it's not even noon yet. Didn't you say you were already done shopping? And how do you know this stuff about Gringotts if you're Muggle-born?" Hermione rolled her eyes at this.

"Well, you see Harry, when I got my letter I opened and responded right away. My parents and I got a tour three days ago. I'm just here for the ambiance and the book store. Not all first year witches and wizards hide their letter under a doormat before reading it."

Seeing the annoyed look on Harry's face, she added, "Not that you had choice."

Harry acknowledged this, and once again regretted living with the Dursleys. How much different would his life be if his parents had raised him? How many more amazing things would he know of? As he and Hermione got to the bank's steps, Harry recognized a familiar figure. A very large familiar figure at that.

"Hello, Harry! Already done? And who's this fine young lady?" Harry introduced Hermione, amused by her surprise at Hagrid's size. After she had regained her composure and had been told what he did for a living, Hermione asked what kinds of creatures lived on the Hogwarts grounds, stating that she had just finished Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Sensing that this conversation would go on for hours if it weren't stopped, Harry quickly interrupted.

"Actually, Hagrid, there's still stuff I need to do at Gringotts. I got a little sidetracked after, uh, running into Hermione." He and Hermione smiled at that. "Maybe you could order some food? I won't be long."

"Oh, that's fine Harry. Glad to see yer makin' some friends. I might need some more time anyway. There's, uh, somethin' I gotta buy." Hagrid's eyes seemed to twinkle a bit as he said this, but Harry didn't notice. He was about to enter the bank when Hermione stopped him.

"Harry, I've heard that goblins place a lot of importance on respect and honor. We need to be as polite as possible."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "And of course, since I'm so rude and uncaring, you felt the need to tell me that so I don't go and act like my usual self...Thanks."

Hermione's eyes widened. "No! I didn't mean...not like that...I was just...if you didn't know..."

"It's fine, Hermione," Harry interrupted, holding out a hand a smiling. "I was kidding. Thanks for the advice, though I think at this point neither of us could be considered an expert on goblins. We'll just treat them as respectable people of authority, maybe even a little better."

When he entered, Harry couldn't help but once again feel a little bit disoriented and awed by the impressive look of Gringotts. A little embarrassed and unsure of what to do, Harry walked over to a nearby goblin who was sitting at a table.

"My name is Griphook," the goblin informed Harry when he noticed the young wizard's presence, "how may I be of service?"

"Well, sir," replied Harry, hoping that 'sir' was a term of respect to goblins as well, "my name is Harry Potter. I was wondering if there are any vaults owned by my family that I could see and get details on."

At this the goblin looked very surprised indeed. He asked for Harry to wait a moment, putting an open hand on his heart, which Harry reflected after a moment. It seemed like the right thing to do As the goblin left, Hermione, who had been standing nervously nearby, came up to Harry.

"Good job. Not that I thought you were going to insult him, but good job nonetheless. Why did he leave?"

"I don't know. He just asked if he could consult with a few other goblins. Here he comes now," Harry said as he saw the goblin coming back, "maybe he'll say."

After they had both bowed, the goblin said to Harry, "The Head Goblin of Gringotts would like to meet with you. If you would please follow me, I can take you to him. The girl may come as well if that is acceptable to you."

Exchanging surprised looks, Harry and Hermione followed the goblin. They were led through one of the doors and down a stone corridor lit with torches. The goblin stopped at a section of the rock that seemed exactly like the rest. It wasn't for long, though, because as the goblin knocked, the stone seemed to quiver. Then the stones started to fade, finally disappearing and leaving a hole large enough for a man to walk through. They were led inside, coming into a long hallway with numerous wooden doors.

"Harry!" whispered Hermione, "This doesn't look like a typically used bank room. I think we're going somewhere that not many wizards or witches are permitted to enter!"

"The girl is correct," stated the goblin. "To be requested by the Head Goblin is a great honor."

Harry didn't understand why he (and, because she was his guest, Hermione) was being treated this way. What had he or his family done to make the goblins so interested in them? Harry didn't think this was just because he was the Boy-Who-Lived. It probably helped, no doubt, but this seemed larger than that. At the end of the hall was a very large door (large enough for even Hagrid). The goblin motioned for Harry and Hermione to wait and knocked a complex rhythm on the door. After a few seconds, two knocks followed. The goblin opened the door and motioned for them to enter, which they did.

Harry found himself in a room larger than the marble room he had first been in when he entered Gringotts. Instead of marble, the walls and ceiling appeared to be made of a dark, glossy stone. At the far end of the room was a large chair similar looking to a modest throne, and in front of the chair was an equally large desk. The desk was cluttered with important looking papers, various coins wizard and Muggle alike, and some impressive looking weapons including a dagger and a sword in its sheath. Seated at the chair was an old-looking goblin, yet he still looked very intelligent and in decent physical condition. What was most striking was the air of authority and power that seemed to surround him. Harry saw Hermione bow and remembered his manners. The old goblin nodded his head approvingly at them.

"Thank you for bringing Mr. Potter, Griphook. The girl is here with his approval, correct?" At this the goblin that had led Harry and Hermione nodded. He went to stand next to the Head Goblin. Harry had a suspicion that Griphook was of a higher rank than he might have originally thought. Not many lowly bank tellers met with the head of a bank, Muggle or magical.

"Mr. Potter, I am glad to finally meet you. I had hoped to meet you with your parents earlier than this, but, regrettably, this could not happen before their death. I am glad to see you here in relative good health. I hear you even mimicked a gesture for parting after seeing one!"

Harry was very surprised for what must have been the millionth time today. First he found out his parents were magical, then he found out they had left him a good amount of money, and now it seemed like the Head Goblin had known his parents. Remembering that he had been asked a question, Harry snapped back to reality.

Harry hoped nothing he done was offensive. Perhaps the goblins didn't want wizards practicing their customs, which was apparently included the Harry had mimicked! Harry became quite nervous and a bit worried about why he and Hermione were down here. Harry looked nervously at the Head Goblin.

"I'm sorry, sir," Harry ventured shakily. "If I have offended you or any of your race with my actions I apologize."

Then the Head Goblin did something quite unexpected: he laughed. Sitting at his desk, the Head Goblin laughed deeply, clearly amused.

"I wasn't sure what to expect. Though you were a Potter, I thought perhaps being without your parents' influence you might go down a lesser path. However, I didn't expect you to be this! To be interested in our customs, to make an effort to perform them to the best of your knowledge, and to make an effort not to insult in any way! You, Mr. Potter, are quite extraordinary."

Feeling a little uncomfortable at being called Mr. Potter, Harry tentatively asked, "Would it be acceptable for you to call me Harry, sir? Mr. Potter doesn't feel right."

At this, the goblin smiled. "I will do that, Harry, under the condition that you call me Ragnok." Seeing the the confused expressions on Harry's and Hermione's faces because of his informality, Ragnok decided that some explanations were in order.

"Harry, for about five centuries now, your family and the goblin nation have been on very friendly terms. It started when one of your Potter ancestors saved a goblin's life. Wizards and goblins alike were exploring a very old underground temple. At one point, a tunnel collapsed. Risking his own life, your ancestor saved the life of a goblin directly under the falling stone and earth, stranding himself and the goblin together for about four hours. During that period, the two got to know each other and developed a respect for the other. When he returned, your ancestor starting making an effort to help goblins and understand them. Eventually, the Potter family and the goblins formed an informal alliance out of both friendship and possible advantages for both. The Potters, being a very powerful family and one sympathetic to the Goblins, helped establish a better public opinion of goblins and tried to keep the Wizarding Government from passing unjust laws persecuting goblins. Wizards also have access to many things that goblins do not, both locations and certain information. The goblins provided the Potters with their own useful information and magical protection that had been lost throughout the ages. Recently, your parents worked very hard to keep goblins from being persecuted during the Dark Lord's reign of fear and darkness."

Harry was quite simply stunned. His family, which was over five centuries old, was not only powerful, but it was also on very friendly terms with the goblins, who seemed quite powerful themselves.

"So my family has strong influence in the magical world? Is there anything that I need to do right now? What did they leave me?" Harry would probably have been against poor treatment of magical creatures anyway. He knew what it felt like to be unfairly and sometimes cruelly treated. He hadn't known that wizards didn't always treat magical creatures well. Now he was even more inclined to make a difference.

"To business, then," stated Ragnok, clearly happy to discuss this topic. "You are the heir to James Potter, the previous Lord Potter. As Lord of the Potter House and the last of the Potter family, you will have access to both the official vault of your parents and the Potter Family Vault. This is a vault specifically made for the Potter family which contains the inherited wealth of your ancestors as well as many other valuable possessions passed down by the Potter family. The Lord of the Potter House also is entitled to a seat on the Wizengamot and the Potter Manor. However, there are a few obstacles in your path to becoming Lord Potter."

"What are they?" Harry was worried. Would he have to take some kind of test? Prove his worth? Hermione had told him that the goblins were a warrior race as well as a profiteering one. Would he have to fight someone or something?

"First of all, a formal blood test is required to prove your existence in the family as well as detect any other lineages. This can be done right now. It is generally provided as an option to all newcomers to Gringotts." Opening a compartment in his desk, Ragnok brandished a small silver dagger with runes on the blade. He also took out a piece of paper.

"Draw some blood with the knife and press the blood into the parchment. This will reveal to us any notable ancestral families."

A bit nervous, Harry took the dagger from Ragnok. He quickly pricked his finger with the knife, noticing it didn't hurt as much as he had expected, and pushed his finger onto the parchment, staining it with his blood. The bleeding stopped quite quickly as well.

The blood on the parchment was spreading out and turning into ink. Ragnok took the parchment and inspected it. He looked a bit impressed after he had finished reading.

"As expected, from your father's side you have sole rights to the title of Lord Potter. You also, from his line, are an heir to the Houses of Peverell and Gryffindor. By rights of conquest, you also can claim sole heritage to the House of Slytherin, having bested its last true heir. Though rights of conquest do not allow you take Lordship of a House, you are allowed to claim all its rights and benefits as your own. This requires a long ordeal of legal processes with your Ministry of Magic. Interestingly, you are also an Heir to House Hufflepuff from your mother's side. Though the House of Potter is the only House you may claim Lordship of, you have access to a small portion of the family vaults from the others as well as access to certain properties and locations."

"How is this possible?" asked Harry. "It makes sense that my dad had some other bloodlines, being a pureblood of an ancient House, but how could my mother have any wizard ancestry? Wasn't she was Muggle-born?"

"That, Harry, is quite the discussed topic. We goblins believe that magic has to come from somewhere. Therefore, the idea of magic suddenly appearing in new blood is preposterous to us. Most Muggle-borns, under careful inspection, are proven to have wizard ancestry. However, some of their later ancestors usually turn out to be Squibs, cast out and forced to live as Muggles. Most bloodlines realized early on that they would have to marry Muggles or non-purebloods in order to keep their families lines alive and far-reaching. The only house that strongly opposed marriage to Muggles was Slytherin, which caused the House to diminish over time and prevented branching out. That is why the Dark Lord was the last remaining descendant of Slytherin by blood."

"Hermione," Harry pointed out, "you should to test yourself. You didn't when you first came, did you?"

"No! I didn't think there was any point. May I?" she asked Ragnok, who nodded.

Hermione performed the blood test and, with a squeal of delight, discovered that she was descended from Ravenclaw! Harry could see Hermione's excitement and could tell this meant a lot to her. When they met she had been worried about what he thought of her blood status. Hopefully this helped encourage her that being Muggle-born wasn't a bad thing.

Harry remembered then that Ragnok had said there were multiple obstacles in his way of becoming Lord Potter. When he asked Ragnok, the goblin signed.

"Yes, it is most unfortunate. The law of wizards prevents you from assuming the title of 'Lord' until you are at least 14 years of age. It was put into use to prevent immature children who inherited the title from foolishly abusing their power." Seeing an indignant look on Harry's face, Ragnok assured him, "Clearly, you would not do this. However, the laws cannot be changed and you cannot claim your title as Lord Potter, ownership of Potter Manor, your seat on the Wizengamot, or complete access to your vaults until your fourteenth birthday."

"What's the point in telling me all this then!" exclaimed Harry. "So, basically, I've got all this influence, but there's nothing I can use it for right now?!"

"Harry," Hermione reminded Harry, "A few days ago you would probably have been overjoyed to learn that your parents were simply important people." At this, Harry calmed down significantly, but was still rather upset.

"Still, though, what was the point in getting my hopes up?"

"Well," said Ragnok with a mischievous glint in his eye, "you can't withdraw your gold or claim ownership of your mansion. But, technically, as a Potter, you still have access to the Manor and house-elves. The gold in Gringotts is sometimes used for investment in order to gain profit. You could request a specific thing or things that the bank invest in with the money it uses from your vault.."

Seeing where this was going, Harry smiled just as mischievously. "What, Head Goblin, would you advise that I invest in?"

"Well, Mr. Potter, the Goblin Nation has recently looked into using the Muggle Stock Market. The Muggles have many companies with a great influence and use."

"Is there anything else that you recommend I invest in?"

"Well," the Ragnok smiled innocently, "I think that the Goblin Nation has plans for a Research and Development Department for Gringotts that would create products to help wizards store their possessions. Also, armor and other defensive products are being looked into. With the right investment, the Department would probably show much progress. Although I assume they'd need a product tester. There would be advantages all around. A wizard could get some very new and valuable items, and the goblins would receive some funding and a product tester. "

"In that case," Harry decided, smiling just as innocently, "I request that 5% of the money in my family vault be put into Muggle stocks and 10% be invested in funding the Research and Development Department of Gringotts on the condition that my name be put into consideration for being a product tester."

"How many names are you considering?" asked Hermione, smiling.

Harry could see how well thought out this loophole was. No one would see any change in the transactions for the Potter Vaults, but he was basically buying all kinds of expensive toys and other things with some of his money. The goblins secured a new wizard ally (as well as possibly Hermione, who could come in handy) who could actually use his money now, and they got funds. Harry got indirect access to his gold and the manor of his family.

"Just one," replied Ragnok smoothly. "Oh, look at that. The deadline expired. We'll send you some products to test soon. So, now that that's out of the way, would you like to go over your vault totals and other items inside them?"

"You know," said Harry thinking and looking at Hermione, "I think for now I'm better off not knowing. I'm still really a kid. I've got my whole life to think about business and strategy and things like that. I'm not sure if I'm ready for all of that. Plus, I'm supposed to meet Hagrid and I don't want to keep him waiting. Is that acceptable?" He didn't voice it, but he also didn't want Hermione learning everything about him. As the saying went, you can't put all your eggs in one basket.

Smiling, the Head Goblin nodded. Though Harry was a very mature, wise, and intelligent young wizard, he was still just a boy. Even the goblins didn't start involving their children with business until they were considered adults. When they grew up, Ragnok had a feeling that this boy would change both the magical and the Muggle world.

Before they left, Ragnok gave Harry a thick, old-looking book. "This is a guide to some of our more common customs," Ragnok explained, "but it has been translated so it can be understood by humans. It also contains a more detailed summary of the relationship between the Goblin Nation and the Potter Family. It has been read by countless members of your family to help give them a better idea of who they are working with. I remember presenting this to your father many years ago."

Harry carefully held the book, thinking about how many other Potter hands had held it before. He glanced at Hermione, who looked extremely interested in the book and jealous of Harry, and smiled. This was bound to be more interesting than any regular history books anyway, thanks to the personal tie-in. He couldn't wait to read it.

Harry and Hermione were escorted back to main floor of Gringotts by Griphook and, after politely exchanging goodbyes, walked out of Gringotts enlightened.

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**Author's Note: Well, that's that. Hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you thought of it, any suggestions you have, and/or how I can improve. I can always use advice; I'm still pretty new to this kind of thing. I'll post the next chapter as soon as I can.**


	5. Shopping

**I don't own Harry Potter, etc.**

**Author's Note: A big thank you to all my readers and reviewers. I've been really surprised by how many people have read and liked this story. I had a few mistakes in my previous chapters pointed out to me (thankfully). A few times I referred to McGonagall as "Headmistress" instead of "Deputy Headmistress." Sorry for the confusion if you though she had replaced Dumbledore; those mistakes have been fixed. Also, I was informed of the conversion of pounds to Galleons (5:1) and changed Harry's school funds to more realistic numbers because of that. Hopefully you guys won't notice any more mistakes in my writing, but if you do please point them out to me. Stuff like that always helps, along with suggestions and reviews. Anyway, thanks for reading. Here is the next chapter. Enjoy! **

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When Harry and Hermione left Gringotts, it was nearly two o' clock in the afternoon and they were quite hungry. Both were happy to see that Hagrid and Hermione's parents were waiting for them when they came out the bank's doors (especially because of the Muggle fast food they were holding.) They ate at some tables near the street and listened to Hagrid go on about how he'd love to have a dragon as a pet. Though Hagrid's ideas seemed a bit optimistic, Harry couldn't help but think of all the things he could do with a properly trained dragon. He looked through his books a bit too, which Hermione's parents had brought back from Flourish and Blotts.

After they had finished eating, Hermione's parents told her that it was time for them to go, much to her disappointment. Harry told her he wasn't sure when he'd be able to come to Diagon Alley again before school, and she said her parents didn't want to make any more trips either. They agreed to keep in touch by mail and exchanged addresses. Harry was sad to see them go, but at least now he would have someone to talk to before school ended. As they were about to leave, Hermione looked at Hagrid.

"I almost forgot! What was the thing you had to buy?"

Hagrid looked confused for a moment, but then he remembered: "Oh that's right! Thanks, Hermione. I nearly forgot. Blimey, that'd been embarrassing if I had to wait until term started to give it to ya!"

Reaching into one of his many pockets, Hagrid pulled out what looked like a card and handed it to Harry. When he took it, Harry realized it was a magical birthday card. On the front of the card was a brightly colored, candle adorned, dancing birthday cake. The cake wasn't simply pictured as dancing; the picture actually moved! Around the cake were little figures in party hats blowing noisemakers.

"Now, I know it's a little late an' that yer birthday was a few days ago. I just that I should get you somethin', though. Go on, open it!"

Harry opened the card and was engulfed in a blast of confetti. On the inside of the card were the words "Happy Birthday!" Every few seconds they changed color and wiggled. Harry found a golden slip of parchment with fancy writing on it inside the card.

"Hagrid, wha-"

"That, Harry, is a gift certificate to Eeylops Owl Emporium. It gets ya yer choice of owl, magical cage, an' medium sized bag of owl treats."

"Hagrid, you didn't have to-"

"I know I didn't have to. But I wanted to. Didn't think you'd have gotten many presents from yer relatives. An' this way, you and Hermione can send and receive letters quicker."

Hagrid's generosity deeply moved Harry, and he went over to the large man, giving him a grateful hug. Hermione told Harry that she'd expect an owl at her house in the next few days before leaving with her parents. After the Grangers left, Harry and Hagrid made their way to Eeylops Owl Emporium.

Inside, Harry found himself in a dimly lit room adorned with feathers. A bit unsure of himself, though encouraged by a nod from Hagrid, he walked over to a man arranging bird cages.

"Excuse me, sir, but I have a gift certificate for an owl and accessories from your shop. Could you show me what I can choose from?"

"Oh, yes, of course! Hagrid stopped by about an hour ago to set this up!" The man seemed very excited to help Harry. Harry couldn't help but wonder if Hagrid had let it slip who the gift would be for.

"You'd be Harry, yes? Follow me!" Harry's suspicions were confirmed.

The man led Harry to an area of the shop filled with many owls resting on the rafters and special perches. There were many different species of owls to choose from: Tawny, Screech, Barn, Brown, and Snowy. As Harry looked around, he spotted a pair of shining amber eyes. Coming closer, he saw that the eyes belonged to a beautiful, proud-looking snowy owl. The owl didn't turn away at Harry's approach; it only looked at him with curiosity.

"I think I'll take this one," Harry said, gesturing to the snowy owl. Though he couldn't be sure, the owl looked even more interested in him, as if it understood what was going on. Harry liked that. Intelligence was something he looked for in companions and friends, human or otherwise.

"Yes, she's a nice one, isn't she?" replied the shopkeeper. Reaching out his hand, the shopkeeper called the owl to his arm. The owl flew to him majestically, behaving as well as Harry would expect a trained falcon to perform. The shopkeeper explained.

"My owls, and generally all owls of wizards, are very different from ordinary ones. Having been hatched and raised in magical areas and under special wards, these owls are able to develop connections with wizards. They are smarter than almost all normal animal species, and they can understand what you say to them for the most part. If you were to tell your owl to go to an address and leave a mouse at the doorstep, it would do just that. That's why we can have owls deliver our mail. If she has met someone and likes them, your owl can know where they are and find them even if they aren't at their address. My owls also have much more speed and stamina than normal ones"

Harry was very impressed. He had wondered why wizards used owls to deliver their mail. It now sounded like a very convenient way to communicate, especially since he got an intelligent pet.

He was next shown an area containing many magical cages. Harry, after much debate, chose one that would magically keep the cage neat and clean. Besides that variety, there were cages that could change color and shape, cages that were bigger inside than they appeared, and cages that could make the owl inside invisible.

Finally, Harry received a medium-sized bag of treats for his owl. He was going to open the bag right away and give a treat to his new owl, but the shopkeeper convinced him that this would be a bad idea.

"As I told you earlier," he had said, "these owls are smart. They'll know when a treat bag is being opened, even if it's not for them"

The shopkeeper also gave Harry some pamphlets. One was about snowy owls, one was about caring for his owl, and one was a book of popular owl names. After looking over the names, he had decided he liked how "Hedwig" sounded. When he tried it out, the owl hooted happily. He took this to be a sign that he had chosen well.

After leaving with Hedwig, Harry and Hagrid continued to shop for Harry's school supplies. While Hagrid got Harry's gloves, cauldron, scales, phials, and telescope from a shop across the street, Harry visited the Apothecary. He enjoyed browsing all the odd ingredients, trying to ignore the smell all the while. Now he was glad for the need of dragon hide gloves. Harry wasn't quite sure he wanted to deal with dragon liver and troll eyes with his bare hands. He got his ingredients in the form of a First Year Potions kit and went back to find Hagrid.

Hagrid, when seeing Harry, said he hadn't gotten everything yet. Harry asked if he needed help, but Hagrid had a better idea.

"Why don't you go and get fitted for robes at Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Don't need me for that anyway."

Harry did as Hagrid suggested, leaving his cloak with Hagrid since he'd have to take it off to try on robes anyway. He made sure that his hair covered his scar, though. When he came to the shop and walked inside, he was faced squat, joyful-looking witch whose name tag read "Madam Malkin."

"Need robes for your first year a Hogwarts, dear?' she asked, seeing Harry's uncertain expression. When he nodded, she smiled even wider.

"Why don't you follow me? There's another student being fitted here as well."

Harry was led to the back of the shop and given robes. Soon Madam Malkin began pinning up the robes to the right length. A second witch was doing the same to the other boy about six feet away from him.

The other boy getting his robes fitted looked about Harry's age. He had a pointed face, pale skin, and pale blond hair. He was looking rather impatient.

"Hello," thee boy said. "Hogwarts?" he asked, gesturing at Harry's robes. Harry nodded.

"My father's over at Flourish and Blotts getting my textbooks and my mom's seeing if there are any wands that look good for me. After this, I'm going to drag them to Quality Quidditch Supplies and look at the brooms. I know the letter says we're not supposed to bring them, but maybe I can convince father to pulling some strings. He's a very important person."

The boy seemed quite bored, and Harry figured that he likely wasn't new to the magical world. The boy seemed rather arrogant, in Harry's opinion.

"Do you have a broom?" the boy inquired.

"No."

"Do you play Quidditch at all?"

"No." Harry at least recognized Quidditch as something popular in the magical world, but he didn't know near enough to bluff his way out. He knew not to ask anything, though, which would make his ignorance all the more obvious.

"I play all the time. Father says that I'm bound to be on my house team. I agree. Do you know what house you'll be in?"

"No." Harry hated not knowing what to say to these questions. It made him feel dumb. He just hoped this boy didn't recognize him. Then he'd be in for even more unanswerable, embarrassing questions.

"I guess no one really knows until after they get there, but I just know I'll be in Slytherin. My whole family's been in it. Imagine being in Hufflepuff!" The boy snorted in derision at this. "I'd just as soon leave!"

Harry once again recognized the names of what the boy was talking about, but he didn't know enough to actually understand what they were. He really wished he'd read more of _Hogwarts, A History_. Maybe then he'd be able to keep track of the conversation better.

"Where are your parents?" the boy suddenly asked.

Harry was a bit taken aback. "They're dead," he answered, adding a note of finality that indicated he didn't want to address this topic any further. The other boy either didn't pick up on this or didn't care.

"Oh, that's too bad. They were...our kind, though weren't they?"

Understanding where the boy was going for once, Harry replied, "Yes, a witch and a wizard."

"Good. They really shouldn't let the others in. Do you realize that most don't even know about magic or Hogwarts before they get their letter? It's just not right. It'd be much better if they just stuck with the old wizarding families. By the way, what's your surname?"

Harry was saved from revealing his identity when the witch fitting the other boy told him he was finished. As the boy left, he turned back to Harry.

"See you at Hogwarts, I suppose."

Harry hoped that he wouldn't see too much of this boy.

After Harry had gotten his robes and hat, which he found he didn't look too foolish in, he found Hagrid waiting for him outside Madam Malkin's.

"Blimey, Harry, I'm glad you're done! I almost forgot about having to meet back with Professor McGonagall at six. We've only got an hour to get you yer wand! Follow me."

Hagrid and Harry quickly made their way down the street to a narrow and shabby shop. In golden letters above the door, Harry could read, "Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C." A bell sounded as Harry and Hagrid entered the shop, which was quite small. Inside the dusty, dim shop, there were many shelves with stacks of thin, long boxes.

"Good afternoon"

The voice startled Harry, and he turned to see a very old man with wide, pale eyes that were shining quite brightly in the dimness of the shop.

"Oh...hello." Harry felt a bit uneasy around this man, but he wasn't sure why.

"It's good to see you here, Harry Potter. You remind me very much of your father, but you possess your mother's eyes. I remember when your parents bought their wands; it seems like only yesterday. Ten and a quarter, swishy, made of willow. That's what chose her. Chose your mother."

Harry was quite surprised that the old wizard recognized him. He realized he'd forgotten to put his old cloak back on, but he didn't think he identity was that obvious.

"Your father," continued the old wizard, who Harry assumed could only be Mr. Ollivander, "Chose mahogany, pliable, elven inches long. Though, of course, it was the _wand_ that chose _him_."

Suddenly Ollivander was right next to Harry, almost touching Harry's concealed scar with his long finger.

"Thirteen and a half, yew. Phoenix feather. I'm deeply sorry to have ever sold this wand. So much harm. So much grief. So much terror."

Harry realized that Mr. Ollivander was talking about Voldemort's wand. Voldemort. This man had made and sold to Voldemort the same wand that had murdered Harry's parents and given him his scar. Harry was feeling very uncomfortable. He knew he and Hagrid were running low on time, so he decided to get to the point.

"Sir, I'm here to buy a wand."

"Of course you're here for a wand boy!" chuckled the wandmaker, pulling out a tape measure and beginning to take measurements. "And you'll receive no better from any other fool who tries to sell what he calls a wand. Which hand is your wand hand?"

"Um, I'm right-handed I guess," Harry replied. He noticed that the tape measure was now measuring all on its own.

"Yes, yes, of course," mutter Mr. Ollivander. "Now, every one of my wands uses the core of a very magical substance coming from a magical creature. No two wands are exactly the same because even two of the same magical species are quite differently. Now, the wand chooses the wizard. Remember that. Most think the opposite."

"Try this," Mr. Ollivander said, handing Harry a wand from a box on a nearby shelf. Harry, curious, waved the wand around. Mr. Ollivander quickly snatched it back.

"Try this one," he said, handing Harry another wand. Harry tried again, and once again the old wizard took the wand away.

This continued for some time. Mr. Ollivander would give Harry a wand, Harry would try it, and Mr. Ollivander would take it back. After a time, Hagrid said they only had fifteen minutes before they needed to meet Professor McGonagall.

At this, Mr. Ollivander replied, "There can be no rushing this. It must be done right." Suddenly, a wry smile came upon his face. Going to the very back of the shelves, he retrieved a very old-looking box. He took out the wand and gave it to Harry.

As Harry grasped the wand, he felt a certain comfortable warmth spread through his hand. In one swift motion, he twirled the wand, which emitted a shower of bright, exploding red sparks. Hagrid and Mr. Ollivander both applauded and looked happy, though possibly for different reasons. (Hagrid didn't want to make Professor McGonagall wait.)

"Eleven inches. Holly. Phoenix feather." This sparked Harry's memory.

"Sir, didn't you say that Vol...sorry...You-Know-Who...had a phoenix feather in his wand?"

Impressed, Mr. Ollivander answered, "Yes, Mr. Potter, you are correct. In fact, it is quite curious. The phoenix who gave the feather gave two in total; one was used to make this wand, and another was made into a wand of yew thirteen and a half inches long."

Realizing what Mr. Ollivander meant, Harry felt very uneasy. His wand was, in a way, related to Voldemort's. It was quite a concept. It seemed like too much of a coincidence as well.

Harry didn't have long to ponder because as soon as he had payed for his wand, Hagrid practically carried him out of Diagon Alley and into the Leaky Cauldron. They made it with thirty seconds to spare, though Harry felt quite frazzled. Hagrid just seemed relieved to have made it on time.

"Best not to let her think you don't follow the rules. You'll have enough teachers keeping an eye on you, being your father's son. Yer dad was quite the prankster when he was at Hogwarts."

Professor McGonagall arrived at six o' clock on the dot. She briskly walked over to Hagrid and Harry, congratulating them for being on time and informing Harry that it was time to go.

"But Professor McGonagall!" Harry objected, "the Dursleys will hate me even more now! They knew all this time, didn't they? My mother wouldn't have been able to keep that from her family. They just didn't want me to know!"

At this, Professor McGonagall hesitated before nodding her head. "They knew. Professor Dumbledore also left them with a letter explaining things when he gave you to them."

"So why can't I just not go back? They won't mind! I saw a some sort of hotel around here. I could stay there!"

"I'm sorry, Harry, but you can't do that. An eleven year old boy can't just live by himself, even if he's responsible. You won't be there less than a month before term starts."

Harry was about to object, when Professor McGonagall added, "There's no use arguing. Even if it was my decision, I wouldn't let you. Besides, you don't need to tell them about all of this."

Shocked, Harry realized she was right! He could make them think he had gotten into some far away boarding school through a scholarship program.! He could say he had to pass some preliminary tests when he first got there, so they'd have to leave him alone while he studied all day!

"Are they home yet?" Harry asked.

"No," said Professor McGonagall. "They're under surveillance right now and it doesn't look like they'll be home for at least an hour. We'll cast spells on your supplies to make them look like Muggle materials and you can be back before they realize you're gone." She handed Harry a piece of paper. "This has been enchanted to look like an official paper, saying whatever you wish it to (within reason). Just concentrate on what you want it to say, and everything necessary to maintain your ruse and help your last month be little more enjoyable will appear to be written on the paper."

Convinced, Harry told McGonagall that he supposed he could go. After saying goodbye to Hagrid, who made Harry promise to visit him once he got to Hogwarts, Harry followed Professor McGonagall outside.

Waiting for them was a taxi that Harry guessed was driven by a wizard. Muggle taxi drivers usually didn't wear robes, complain about the annoying Muggle law enforcement, or take wizarding currency. On the way back to number four, Privet Drive, Professor McGonagall handed Harry a ticket for a train going to Hogwarts on the first day of term. When he pointed out that the platform, Nine and Three-Quarters, didn't exist, she only smiled.

"You didn't think a Muggle train would go to Hogwarts, did you? To get to the Hogwarts Express, just walk through the barrier between Platforms Nine and Ten."

When they arrived at number four, Privet Drive, Harry was sad to return back. He knew it was for the best, though. He got out of the taxi, brought his school supplies (disguised as second-hand Muggle supplies) into the house with the driver's help, and watched as the taxi drove away.

Harry had had the best day of life that he could remember, and he was sad that he would have to wait a month before starting Hogwarts. At least this last month before term, thanks to Professor McGonagall's help, wouldn't be too awful. Harry sat down on the couch, looked at his supplies, and began working out a convincing story that would majorly improve his life with the Dursleys.

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**Author's Note: Well, there you go. Harry is back at Privet Drive, but things are definitely looking up. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and sorry again about the mistakes (and future ones that I'm bound to make at some point). Please let me know what you think, and feel free to give suggestions! Thanks again to all the people that have supported me. Until next time!**


	6. A Month with the Dursleys

**Note: I don't own Harry Potter, etc...**

**Author's Note: Hey guys! Sorry for the delay on this. I had a busy couple of days and didn't have much time to write. Thanks to all who have given reviews and suggestions! They are much appreciated. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

The Dursleys came home to find a very excited Harry waiting for them. They were not very happy about this; it had been a long day and all three of them just wanted to relax. However, once they listened to Harry's words, they quickly adopted his joy.

"Uncle Vernon! Uncle Vernon! I got a letter today! It was from some very important people!"

"What do you mean, boy? Who'd right to you?!" Uncle Vernon was not used to Harry being happy, and it made him feel a bit grumpy and wary at the same time. He remembered that Petunia had once mentioned something about some dangerous, odd people who might come for Harry.

"It's a boarding school in Scotland! They're accepting me! I did really well in some test and now they're offering me a full scholarship if I get similar results on some required entrance tests!"

Uncle Vernon smiled wolfishly. "Boarding school you say? Full scholarship?"

"Yeah!" Harry smiled an even bigger smile. "They had a representative come and explain it all to me. I said you wouldn't mind if you missed it because I knew you'd approve! The representative even dropped off some second-hand course books and a school uniform! He said all expenses have been covered."

"Let me see the letter," Uncle Vernon said, a bit suspiciously. This seemed a bit too good to be true. If that boy were pulling some sort of joke...

His doubts were proven false, though, when Harry retrieved a letter from the kitchen table and practically ran it over to him. As he looked through the letter, he was very pleased. According to this letter, the school was quite far away and could only be reached by train. If Harry went to this school, he could potentially be out of the Dursley's lives the whole school year. The full scholarship and second-hand items the boy had received meant that it wouldn't even cost Vernon a penny! He only hoped the boy would pass this entrance test. He'd make the him study day and night if he had to!

Reading on, he saw that the letter addressed the entrance test. It was a lot of material, and students would have to study a lot to get in. It also stressed the need for a proper environment. Proper lighting, fresh air, open space, and good food and sleep seemed to be nearly essential.

"I need to talk to your aunt about this," Uncle Vernon informed Harry, "but you should know that we both are _very_ proud of you." He quickly went to find and talk with Petunia, all the while grinning wildly.

Twenty minutes later Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia called Harry and Dudley into the living room. It seemed that they had had an idea, and they seemed to think it was a very clever and practical one.

"Harry, your aunt and I have reached a decision," Uncle Vernon announced. "We think that it's time you moved out of that old cupboard. You're getting too big for it. We've decided that you should move into Dudley's second bedroom. You can clean out his stuff and have your own nice, quiet room."

At this, Dudley, who had been barely listening, jumped to his feet. He began screaming at his mother and father, shouting that Harry would never be allowed up there and that they should take it back. When that didn't work, he began to sniffle, first quietly, then much louder, until he was bawling his eyes out.

As much as Petunia hated to see her little boy upset, Vernon had explained to her how much this new arrangement would benefit them. If Harry made it into this school, they would be rid of him most of the year. Plus, then he wouldn't be able to go to that awful school her sister had attended. It wouldn't do to have him learning all that unnaturalness. As Dudley stormed off, she went to comfort and explain to him what would happen if all went as hoped.

After his wife and son had left, Vernon shifted a bit awkwardly before continuing. "We expect that you will use this space as your study area. This way we can, er, keep an eye on you more than if you were to go to some library or park. Now, here are a few ground rules for how this last month before that school starts is going to pass. First, we expect you to be in your room studying at least five hours a day..."

* * *

Harry jumped, content and relaxed, onto his bed (formerly Dudley's second bed) and waited. He didn't think he could have planned it any better. His uncle and aunt had taken everything hook, line, and sinker! The letter had worked beautifully, backing Harry up and convincing his uncle once and for all. He now had his own room, which he was fairly sure had been the result of the last minute change he had made to the letter describing an essential study environment. He would definitely put it to good use for studying (though not the material Uncle Vernon might have been thinking of). Uncle Vernon also decided that the early morning chores Harry had previously done would be bad for his studies and had freed Harry from them. He would be free to sleep in now, as long as it didn't affect the time he spent studying.

Hearing a quiet tapping sound on the window, Harry smiled and looked at his new digital alarm clock beside his bed, which read 12:00 A.M. He got out of bed and quietly opened the window of his new bedroom. Staring back at him was his beautiful snowy owl, Hedwig, who looked a bit annoyed at him.

Seeing the look, Harry defended himself quietly: "Sorry Hedwig, I know it's a bit of a pain not being able to come and see me until midnight. It's necessary, though. Can you imagine what the Dursleys would think if they knew I had an owl, or even if they saw one hanging around by the house? At least it's better than being caged all day."

At this the bird ruffled her feathers and caught the owl treat Harry had tossed into the air. He had instructed Hedwig that she would have to keep her distance while he resided at number four, Privet Drive. She was free to fly around and hunt, but she could only come to Harry at around midnight. Any letters for Harry she would either hold onto until then or place outside his window if they were important. It was regrettable, but it was the best option he could come up with.

"Hedwig, can you take this to Hermione?" Harry gave Hedwig an envelope with Hermione's name on it, which she took and flew away with after affectionately nipping his hand. Harry hoped that Hermione would reply soon. He had written about how his living conditions had improved, and he had also asked her what she had studied so far. He guessed that her copy of _Hogwarts, A History_ had already been read numerous times. Still grinning, Harry returned to bed, feeling the happiest and most comfortable he had every been while at number four, Privet Drive.

Harry awoke the next morning refreshed, which had to have been a first. He leisurely walked to the kitchen and, finding that Uncle Vernon was at work and Aunt Petunia and Dudley were out, proceeded to make his own breakfast. After that, Harry went back to his room to study.

Though he didn't really _need_ to study, Harry figured that it would be helpful in the future if he already knew some of the class work. Besides, he enjoyed reading from his textbooks. There was still a lot about magic and the magical world that Harry didn't understand. Reading his books, Harry learned a lot. He found out that he could transfigure objects, that he could be studying magical plants and creatures at Hogwarts, and that Hogwarts seemed to be a very old, magical place that know one knew all the secrets of. Harry was sure that he would enjoy his time at Hogwarts if he would be learning about this and more.

* * *

About two weeks into his stay with the Dursleys, Harry received an interesting box via owl post. Hedwig had left it by the window so he knew it was important. When he took the box inside, he saw an attached note.

Dear Mr. Potter

This is the first product we have for you to test, though definitely not the last. It's a special magical trunk. It can be shrunk to fit in your pocket, yet it still holds much more than your average trunk. It is much bigger inside than it appears. There are five main compartments for your things, one hidden compartment to be used as a small safe, and one underneath the main five. This compartment is the size of a small room and has inside a bed, desk, and other accommodations; it is meant to hide the owner or provide shelter for him or her. Before opening your trunk for the first time, you must give it some of your blood so that it can recognize you and open only to you. A single drop should suffice. On your next visit, you can give your opinions on it.

Gringotts

Harry looked at the brown package with new interest. Opening it, he found a small trunk no bigger than a Muggle smart phone. Seeing no obvious buttons or symbols on the trunk, he set it on the ground and tapped it once with his wand.

The trunk quickly grew to a more ordinary size. Doing as the letter said, Harry took a pin from his school robes and pricked his finger, allowing a drop of blood to hit the top of the trunk. The blood was immediately absorbed, and the trunk opened smoothly. To Harry the inside looked quite normal. On top of five compartment doors there was a note. According to the note, to open the hidden safe compartment, Harry had to push with his palm on the inside top and say the word "Galleon." To access the compartment underneath the main ones, he had to grasp the handles of the second and fourth compartments, push them apart from each each other, and say the word "cellar."

Harry decided to first try out the main compartments. When he opened the first, he looked inside, deeper than he thought he would have to, and saw a space about three feet by five that looked like a bookshelf that had fallen backward. Clearly this was meant for his textbooks. Harry promptly moved his books from a stack near his desk into the trunk. He was please to see that there was still plenty of room.

The next compartment was also larger than it seemed. When Harry looked inside, he felt like he was looking at a closet from above. Right near the top of the compartment was a pole across the middle with many hangers on it, and the compartment looked like it was about six feet deep. As with his books, Harry moved all his robes into this compartment.

The third compartment seemed to a potions cupboard, and the fourth and fifth were just empty space. Harry didn't think he'd have any trouble with storage in the near future. He next opened the hidden safe.

When Harry pressed his hand to the inside part of the trunk top, it turned a metallic gray. After he had said the password, a rectangular hole appeared. Inside was a small space that looked just like the inside of a Muggle safe. Harry placed his remaining gold in there.

He finally got to the last compartment. When Harry pushed apart the second and fourth compartments, the others disappeared. The ones he pushed moved to the ends of the trunk. Saying the password, the bottom of the trunk disappeared and was replace by a large hole. A ladder slowly came up out of the hole

Harry climbed down the ladder and found himself in a room a little smaller than Dudley's second bedroom. The bed looked comfortable enough, and the desk looked like it would be nice. Harry was extremely surprised to find what looked like a bathroom. He didn't want to know how the goblins had gotten that in there, or how it worked in a place like this (he assumed there was no plumbing). Looking around the room, he saw doors very close to each other.

Opening the first door, Harry found a bookshelf with the same books he had placed in the first compartment. The second door had a closet with his robes as well. It appeared that he could access the compartments even while inside the bottom one. Harry had to admit that this trunk was pretty cool. It could be a great place to avoid the Dursleys in summers to come. Harry climbed out of the trunk and began to write a letter to Hermione, informing her of the new item he was "testing."

The last month of summer passed far more quickly than Harry would have thought. His relatives had actually been somewhat tolerable. The main annoying thing about them for that last month had been the constant badgering about his studying. Between studying, communicating with Hermione, and "testing" the trunk, Harry had actually been quite busy.

* * *

When he had told Uncle Vernon he needed a ride to King's Cross, Uncle Vernon had smiled. "It would be my pleasure," he hadreplied. The morning of September first, Harry had become quite nervous. He had already triple-checked everything and was about the check a fourth time when he was told it was time to go. Harry almost couldn't get out of the car when they arrived at King's Cross; Uncle Vernon practically had to drag him out. He had just been so nervous.

Harry, just in front of the station entrance, sighed. When he entered King's Cross, he would be entering into a whole new life. A life where he had been famous since birth. A life that he hadn't even known about until a month ago. A life that now he was quite nervous about entering. What if the students expected too much of him? What if the teachers were extra hard on him? What if he just didn't have the talent to succeed at Hogwarts. Magical theory was one thing; actually doing magic was another.

As Harry stood pondering his future, Uncle Vernon walked up to him and spoke quietly into his ear. "Your aunt and I have invested a lot into you getting into this school, boy. We've given you a room, no chores, and much more food than we normally would have. Your involvement in this school has been costly, with or without your scholarship, so let me make myself clear. You WILL get into this school, and you WILL stay there until next summer. That was and is the plan. If you don't...well...let's just say that your aunt and I will be very displeased."

That was all the motivation Harry needed,quickly entering King's Cross and moving toward Platforms 9 and 10. Even if Hogwarts didn't live up to his hopes and expectations, it would without a doubt beat living with the Dursleys. It appeared that some people just didn't change.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, that's the latest chapter! It was a little rushed (sorry if it's noticeable), but I wanted to get this chapter posted today. This is kind of meant to just be a filler chapter between Diagon Alley and Hogwarts, but I wanted to at least give you guys something. More should hopefully come this weekend. Anyway, please let me know what you think! Any advice will be appreciated, and thanks again for being patient with me! Until next time!**


	7. The Hogwarts Express

**Author's Note: First let me say that I'm sorry for my lack up updating. I don't have the time anymore to write as much as I'd like. Second, I'd like to express my thanks to you guys for bearing with me and reading my stuff. Part of my motivation to keep writing comes from you, so thanks! As always, let me know what you think. Enjoy!**

* * *

Walking into King's Cross, Harry was ready to begin his exploration of the magical world, starting with Platform 9 ¾ and the Hogwarts Express. Looking at his ticket, Harry smiled, imagining how stupid he would feel if he didn't know how to get there. Harry had just began his walk to the barrier between nine and ten when he heard someone mentioning Muggles.

Wanting to see who it was, he turned and saw a plump red-haired woman with four red-haired boys and one red-haired girl. Clearly they were all together. Each of the boys had a trunk, and one of them had an owl.

Harry could see that this was a wizarding family, and that made him a bit nervous. He wanted to make new friends and get to know people in the wizarding community. However, he was also nervous about people knowing who he was. He didn't want people to treat him differently. Harry also knew that if he associated with the wrong people, bad things could happen. The title of Boy-Who-Lived meant that his actions would constantly be under scrutiny, and people would both look up to him and try to make him look bad.

Deciding that he was perhaps being too paranoid, Harry made his way over to the family. As he got closer, he noticed that two of the boys appeared to be twins and that one looked about his age. He walked over to the family and tried to introduce himself. What came out was an intelligent-sounding, "Um, excuse me, I... I uh...I'm..."

The woman noticed Harry and smiled, though she must have misinterpreted Harry's actions because she proceeded to instruct Harry on how to get to the platform. Harry could only nod helplessly as she explained. Harry had been correct about the age of the other red-haired boy, whose name turned out to be Ron. He then, following instruction, entered Platform 9 ¾. He would have been lying if he had said he wasn't afraid at all. Despite all the magic he had seen and the reasoning for it, running into a wall was still a bit unnerving.

When Harry came out on the other side, he opened his eyes to see the scarlet Hogwarts Express. It was a magnificent sight. The platform was crowded with people and the occasional cat and owl.

Harry boarded the train and went into the last compartment. He had told Hermione in his last letter that they could meet there. The last compartment, they had reasoned, would be easy to find and probably wouldn't have any occupants. It looked like they had been correct. There was no one in there. Harry had just put his trunk into a corner when he saw Hedwig tapping at the window. Smiling, he went over and opened it.

"You're nearly late," he remarked. "The train leaves in a few minutes." She hooted affectionately at him. "You can either ride with me or fly on ahead to Hogwarts."

Hedwig apparently wished to fly because she nipped his hand affectionately before flying out the window. Harry sighed. Now he just had to wait for Hermione.

With a loud whistle, the train began to crawl forward. Harry was filled with a sense of excitement. He was finally on his way to Hogwarts!

The door opened, but it wasn't Hermione. It was the boy, Ron, who Harry had seen before he got on the train. He seemed a bit nervous.

"Mind if I sit with you?" he asked. "Everywhere else is either empty or full."

Harry nodded and gestured for the boy to sit down.

"I'm Ron. Ron Weasley. Weren't you with us before Platform 9 ¾?" When he saw Harry's nod, he added, "Sorry about Mum. She tends to be a bit...over motherly."

"It's fine," Harry replied.

He turned to see Hermione at the door, smiling. He waved, and gestured for her to come in. She did so, dragging her rather large trunk into the compartment. Harry guessed that Hermione had brought a few more books than required. After Harry introduced the two to each other, Hermione turned to Harry.

"Sorry I'm a bit late. Some boy named Neville lost a toad." She shuddered. "I just hope it doesn't touch me or jump on me."

"Better than stepping on it," ventured Ron, which earned him a pained look from Hermione.

"Anyway, Harry," she continued, but Ron interrupted again.

"Harry? Not...Harry Potter?!"

Harry sighed, seeing Ron's awed expression, and nodded. He knew he'd have to get used to this, but that didn't make it any easier.

"Do you have the...you know...the...scar?"

Harry lifted his bangs so Ron could see the lightning bolt scar on his forehead. Unfortunately, the twin red-heads chose this moment to come in to tell Ron about some giant spider one of their friends had. After gawking with Ron and asking questions about what he remembered, the twins left (but not after introducing themselves to Harry).

"Did you really live with Muggles? What was it like?" Ron was still in awe of Harry.

"To be honest, it really sucked," Harry conceded. "Not all of them are like that, but I got stuck with some pretty bad ones. I know they're family, but it's hard to believe. You look you've got a pretty nice one, with your three brothers and your sister."

"Five brothers, actually. Besides Fred, George, and Percy the prefect, there's Bill and Charlie. They're already out of school, but they left their marks. Charlie was amazing at Quidditch, and Bill was Head Boy. Fred and George make everybody laugh with their jokes and pranks. Now I'm coming in with my brothers' school stuff and stuck in their shadows."

Trying to cheer Ron up, Hermione added, "Well, now you've got Harry Potter as a classmate. None of them had that." Ron cheered up a bit at this and asked what Quidditch teams Harry and Hermione liked. When they said they didn't have any, Ron began to speak of many famous teams, moves, and matches.

Harry and Hermione were rescued by an older looking woman pushing a cart of very strange looking food who asked if they wanted to buy anything. Ron replied, a bit sadly, that he had food. Harry would have gotten food (he finally had the pocket money to do so), but he had no idea what to get. He and Hermione weren't sure if they trusted things such as "Chocolate Frogs" and the like. The woman left for the next compartment.

"She always forgets I don't like corned beef," Ron remarked as he pulled out a lumpy package. "Aren't you guys hungry?"

"Yeah," Harry sighed, stomach rumbling, "but I didn't bring anything, and I don't know anything about wizard food or treats. I'd hate to get something nasty."

An idea came to him and, glancing at Hermione, he pulled out some gold from his pocket. Though it was only about half of what was in his pocket (and a very trifling amount to him after visiting Gringotts), there was still enough gold in his hand to make Ron's eyes bulge.

"Ron, think you could buy some stuff for the three of us? Hermione and I wouldn't know what to get." Ron excitedly agreed and rushed out the compartment to buy some food, leaving Harry and Hermione alone.

"Why didn't you put your trunk in your pocket?" Hermione asked once Ron was gone. She hadn't wanted to bring it up when Ron was there.

"People might wonder where it was then," Harry explained. "Pretty much every student has one, so I'd stand out. It'd be nice if people didn't realize that my trunk is a bit more than it seems." She nodded at this, understanding the logic.

"What do you think of Ron?" he asked her. She glanced at the door before sighing a bit.

"Honestly," she mused, "he doesn't seem like the brightest or most observant person. He does seem to have a lot of knowledge of wizarding world though."

"But can we trust him?" Harry pushed.

"At this point, I think it's a bit early to tell. I certainly wouldn't blab out all your secrets to him. Nothing about him seems bad though. I don't think he's got any bad intentions regarding us or your fame."

"That was my impression too," Harry said just as Ron came in bearing an armful of food.

"I got all the good stuff! Chocolate Frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Licorice Wands, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes, and more!"

Hermione eyed the Chocolate Frogs suspiciously. "Those aren't, well, real fro-"

"Nah," Ron interrupted. "They're just chocolate. They just move like frogs."

Hermione nodded, but still eyed the candy with a look of distrust. She then told the boys that she was going to meet some non-male students and left the compartment, waving goodbye to Harry and Ron.

Ron shrugged and muttered something that could have been, "More for us!" He showed Harry a Chocolate Frog, which he caught and stuffed into his mouth. Apparently the Chocolate Frogs came with cards of famous witches and wizards. Harry opened one up and found a card for Albus Dumbledore, an interesting coincidence. He had heard this man's name mentioned, and now he had a face to match with the name.

Then the face moved. Harry almost dropped the card in surprise. It took about a minute's worth of explaining on Ron's part to help him process the fact that wizard photographs moved on their own (not like movies, but like real people stuck in the picture frames). He and Ron continued to eat the treats, and Harry found that most of them were quite good. Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans had some bad ones, but the mystery could be half the fun.

Harry had just eaten his third Pumpkin Pasty when the door opened. He thought it was Hermione, but he was dead wrong. Standing in front of the door were three boys. Two were quite large and stood on either side of the third, whom Harry recognized as the boy from Madam Malkin's.

"Harry Potter," stated the boy. It wasn't a question. He seemed much more interested in Harry now than he had during their first meeting. "I should have recognized you before. But no matter. It seems you're in need of my help already."

"Oh yes, these are Crabbe and Goyle," the boy added, gesturing at his large bodyguards. "I'm Malfoy. Draco Malfoy." Ron sniggered at this, though he tried pass it off as a cough. It didn't work.

"Something wrong? Besides the obvious?" the boy smirked. Turning to Harry, he added, "Red hair, freckles, cheap clothes. A sure sign of a Weasley, my father says. He didn't want me going off and making friends with the wrong sort or people. Some are poor, some don't think like purebloods, and some are all of that and more." Malfoy eyed Ron at this. "I thought I might help you out like he did for me."

Harry eyed the boy. What he'd said about Ron was unkind, but it wasn't exactly far from the truth. From what he'd seen, the Weasleys weren't a very rich or powerful family by any means. However, fame and fortune weren't all they were made out to be. Harry knew that firsthand. And while having an ally who was rich and powerful might be smart, having a friend right now whom he could trust was more important. People like Malfoy were only in it for themselves. Besides, Malfoy only seemed to be interested in him because of his fame, which was steadily becoming one of the most annoying things Harry could think of. Ron had come to him even before he had known Harry's name.

While Harry knew he had to decline Malfoy's help and save Ron, he couldn't just insult the blonde boy outright. If a fight would happen, Harry didn't want to be accused of provoking an attack. Based on the sizes of the two boys next to him, Malfoy would have the advantage in a fight anyway. He noticed Crabbe and Goyle hungrily eying the snacks in the compartment.

"Thank you for the help, Malfoy," Harry replied in an overly polite voice. "I'll be sure to keep it in mind. By the way, did you guys get your free cake?" Seeing the puzzled expression of Malfoy's face and the sudden looks of interest in Crabbe's and Goyle's, he continued.

"Yeah, there's a bunch of cake near the front of the train. First or second compartment. I think it's like a welcoming gift for first years." None of the boys had the symbols of their House on their robes. According to _Hogwarts, A History_, first years got them after they were Sorted. Harry inwardly smirked as Crabbe's and Goyle's faces changed from confusion as to how Harry knew what year they were to excitement as they realized that they were entitled to free cake. It seemed he had judged them accurately.

"Chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, and a layer of caramel in between." Crabbe's and Goyle's mouths were watering while Malfoy seemed unsure what Harry hoped to gain with this. Harry put his hand to one side of his mouth and, in a loud whisper, added, "Weasley hasn't gotten his yet. If you hurry, you can probably get his share too." Crabbe and Goyle were out of the compartment before Malfoy could turn around. Realizing that his bodyguards were gone, Malfoy's face became even paler before he started running to catch up with the two large boys.

Harry turned to look at Ron, who looked back. They stared for about five seconds before bursting into laughter. Hermione, wearing her robes, returned to find them on the ground rolling with laughter.

"Honestly, I'm gone for who-knows-how-long and when I return three boys are sprinting toward the front of the train and you two are in here practically dying of laughter. I don't even want to know," she added as Harry regained his composure and tried to explain. She went over to try some food and shrieked.

Harry turned to see a rat chewing on a Pumpkin Pasty. He was about to move toward it when Ron stopped him.

"It's only Scabbers," he explained. "He used to be Percy's before he got an owl. All that rat does is eat and sleep. Must have woken up and wanted food while Malfoy was harassing us." He unceremoniously shoved Scabbers into his pocket.

"I just came back to tell you that you'd better get your robes on," Hermione said. "We're almost at Hogwarts."

Hermione left Harry and Ron so they could change in privacy. Harry noticed that Ron's robes seemed a bit short and frayed, but he didn't mention it. As they were changing, a voice echoing through the train said that they would be arriving shortly and that they were to change into robes and leave their luggage on the train to be brought in separately.

The train soon stopped and Harry and Ron got off the train and onto a small, dark platform exposed to the fresh (yet chilly) air.

"Firs' years! Over here!"

Harry turned in the direction of the familiar voice and saw Hagrid's tall figure towering over the crowd of students. He and Ron, along with all the other first years, followed Hagrid down a dark path until they got to a big black lake with boats tied off at the shore. The sky was beautifully starry and clear, and the outline of a large castle with lots of towers and turrets was outlined in the distance.

"Fir' years always come by boat to the castle," Hagrid explained in a booming voice to the group of students. "Get in groups of four an' get in a boat. They're magic, no need to worry. Just climb in an' the boat'll do the rest. Couldn't fall in if yeh tried."

Harry and Ron found Hermione, who was helping a round-faced boy into a boat. As they got into the boat, she introduced the boy as Neville. Harry realized that this boy was the toad-loser. Neville seemed to have found his toad, and he was clutching it tightly in one hand. He muttered a shy hello to Ron and Harry.

When the four had gotten into their boat and sat down, the boat began to slowly back away from the shore. Harry found it both unnerving and exciting to be in a boat that moved on its own, but he was thankful that he didn't have to row to the castle. As their boat smoothly traveled across the lake, the four children admired the amazing view of the castle. The boats took them through an underground tunnel and they all got off at what seemed like an underground harbor. Everyone followed Hagrid up a stone staircase.

At the top they found themselves standing on cool grass, in a field covered by the shadow of the enormous castle. It was even more impressive up close. When everyone was up, Hagrid walked over to a massive door and knocked. The doors opened, and Harry could barely contain his excitement.

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**Author's Note: Thanks for reading my latest chapter! I hope you enjoyed it. Please leave a review and let me know what you think! I'll try and write/post the next chapter as soon as I can. Until next time!**


	8. The Sorting

**{This is the section where I lament about not owning Harry Potter. There. Done.}**

**Author's Note: Hey everyone! Thanks for the reviews and comments I've gotten so far. Harry's finally at Hogwarts! Now the real fun can begin. Anyway, please leave a review and let me know how I did and how I can improve and/or make it better for you guys. Enjoy!**

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The huge doors silently and effortlessly swung open. Standing behind them was a witch dressed in emerald robes. Harry at once recognized her as Professor McGonagall. She was dressed more formally than she had been in Diagon Alley, but her expression was as stern as ever.

"Here are the firs' years, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid informed. She nodded and gestured for the students to come in.

The doorway was huge, practically as big as a house. The walls were made of stone, and they were lit with torches. The ceiling was almost too high to see clearly.

Harry and the students followed Professor McGonagall to a small chamber near the hall. There was a doorway near them emitting the sounds of hundreds of voices. Harry realized that his must be the Great Hall. The students were quite packed together, and Harry could hear many talking or shuffling nervously.

Professor McGonagall addressed the students, telling them that before they were seated they would be Sorted into their Houses. Their house, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin, would be with whom the students ate, slept, learned, and spent most of their time with. While the students glanced at one other anxiously as McGonagall talked about house points and other responsibilities, Harry couldn't help but inwardly smile. He and Hermione, having read _Hogwarts, A History_, probably knew more about the school and what would happen than half of the pureblood children. Harry tuned back in to hear McGonagall's parting words.

"The ceremony will begin shortly. You will be appearing in front of the whole school, so you should all try and make yourselves look more presentable. I shall return shortly."

With that, Professor McGonagall left and the students were left to hurriedly smarten themselves up. Ron, who had a rather noticeable smudge on his nose, nervously glanced at Harry.

"Wonder what they'll do to Sort us. I'd think some sort of test. Fred says it hurts a lot, but I hope...I mean think he was joking."

Harry only nodded seriously at Ron before turning to Hermione and sharing a knowing look. He noticed Neville shuffling a bit nervously and trying to re-fasten his cloak. Walking over to him, Harry offered his help. Neville thanked him, and soon the cloak looked fine.

"I'm not very good with tests," Neville whispered. "What if I fail and they don't let me into any House?"

Harry smiled and whispered back, "Don't worry Neville. All they do is put a magic hat on your head. You don't need to do magic or anything like that." Neville sighed in relief.

"Thanks Harry. Maybe I'll-"

"Harry? Not Harry Potter?" A stout blonde boy next to Neville turned to face the two. The boy next to him, a thinner brown-haired boy, turned as well. They seemed to be the only ones who had overheard; most of the first years were nervously talking to one another.

Sighing, Harry nodded, waiting for the large outburst of awe of and excitement. However, he was surprised when the two boys merely nodded. Like Neville, they didn't seem to feel the need to gawk.

"Ernest Macmillian," the boy stated, extending his hand. "You can call me Ernie, though. I had a feeling you'd be close to my year. Made sense, considering how old you were when you beat You-Know-Who. Anyway, glad to have you with us."

"Harry Potter," Harry replied, smiling. The boy seemed a bit pompous, but he also seemed intelligent. The other boy held out his hand a bit hesitantly.

"Terry Boot," he said as they shook hands. Harry appreciated that neither boy seemed to eager to talk about Harry's past. They weren't begging for his memories or asking how he beat Voldemort. They were treating him pretty normally, from what he could guess. Normal wasn't one of Harry's strongest areas of expertise, but from what he knew of it this seemed to fit. Hogwarts life was looking more and more promising.

He thought he heard an odd whooshing, but when he turned it was gone. Then the doors opened and Professor McGonagall stood in the doorway.

"Get into a line," she instructed, "and follow after me."

As Harry walked into the Great Hall, he was at a loss for words. The Great Hall was huge! Hundreds of students seated at tables were staring at him and the other first years. Floating candles illuminated the Hall in an odd flickering light. The bewitched ceiling looked exactly like the night sky, which he heard Hermione explain to another girl a moment later. Most astonishing were the ghosts. There were about twenty ghosts floating throughout the Great Hall. Some were dressed in robes, others in old-fashioned attire, and Harry spotted one that looked to be covered in what could have been blood. It was slightly unnerving to see ghosts of people flying around and going through objects.

"Weird isn't it?" Ron had returned and was staring at the ghosts just like Harry was. "Almost sorta creepy." Harry could only nod.

Professor McGonagall brought in a four-legged stool and placed a pointed hat upon it. The hat appeared very old, with patches, frays, and dirt stains. Everyone was staring at the hat, which did nothing for about three seconds. Then it started to shiver. A rip near the bottom opened up like a mouth and the hat began to sing.

Harry, who had been busy absorbing all the sights of the Great Hall, didn't quite catch all the words of the Sorting Hat's song. He got the message though. Gryffindors were brave. Hufflepuffs were loyal. Ravenclaws were smart. Slytherins were cunning. He was a bit unsure of where he'd be because he thought he possessed most, if not all, of those qualities.

The students and staff applauded the hat's song. Professor McGonagall began calling students up to put the hat on. When "Abbott, Hannah," sat down and put the hat on, after a short pause the hat bellowed out her house: "HUFFLEPUFF!" Student after student went up and were sorted by the hat. Terry Boot, the brown-haired boy Harry had briefly talked to became a Ravenclaw.

Soon it was Hermione's turn, and she eagerly went and put the hat on. After a moment, she became a Gryffindor, which surprised Harry. He had thought for sure with her brain she'd be in Ravenclaw. Neville also became a Gryffindor, and Harry wondered if there was more to him than there might seem.

Draco Malfoy had barely set the hat upon his head before he was named a Slytherin. Harry wasn't necessarily surprised. Malfoy hadn't seemed to be very smart, brave, or loyal on the train. However, Harry wasn't sure how much cunning the boy possessed either.

Ernie Macmillian became a Hufflepuff. After that, Harry started counting down the letters before he would go. Finally they were up to "P." Soon after that came "Perks, Sally-Anne," and finally Professor McGonagall called his name: "Potter, Harry!"

When his name was spoken, whispers started among the students. Harry knew they were talking about him, but at this point he didn't care. He had found a place where he belonged, and he knew for a fact not everyone would judge him because of his fame. That was good enough for him. He sat down and set the hat atop his head, covering his eyes so that all he could see was the black interior of the Sorting Hat. The noises of the Great Hall became drowned out.

"Well, here's a difficult one," mused a small voice in his ear.

_I'm not having the easiest time around here either_ thought Harry. To his surprise, it seemed the voice heard him.

"Yes, well, I'd rather be in your position than mine. Let's see. I think you'd do well in any of three Houses-"

_Three? What about the fourth? What don't you want me in?_

"I'm not sure if you'd be right for Hufflepuff."

_Why? I've got friends that I'm loyal to!_

"Friend_s_?_"_

_OK, just Hermione for now, but I think that'll change soon._

"Hufflepuffs also value honesty."

_Oh. Crap. Well, yeah, good point. What about the other three?_

"Well, you've certainly got the courage and bravery Godric Gryffindor would have valued. You're quite intelligent and thoughtful, which would sit well with Ravenclaw. And you've got a cunning way of thought and a thirst to prove yourself, which Slytherin would be very happy about. Not to mention your magical potential, if not for...never mind getting off track-"

_What do you mean, if not for...?_

"Nothing, nothing at all. Overstepped my bounds. Only supposed to be Sorting, not looking at other details."

_But-_

"I'm sorry, but I will not say any more on the matter."

_Fine. This is taking quite a while._

"Not entirely my fault, but yes."

_Is everyone staring at me?_

"Every student gets stared at while they're Sorted."

_I meant more than usual. Well, they can all just sit and look confused because I'm taking so long._

"That's the spirit! Now, any preferences or worries you might have about any of those three?"

_I get to choose?_

"Well, you'd do fine in any of the three I've mentioned. You're not as single-minded as some of the other students here. Plus I don't want any complaints later if I put you somewhere you don't like later. Better for you to determine the deciding factor."

_Fine. Well, Draco Malfoy's a jerk and I'd rather not be in his house. That lot looks like they give Slytherin a bad name._

"Quite right. Every since Tom Riddle-"

_Who?_

"Nothing, nothing. Carry on."

_Well, Hermione and Neville are in Gryffindor so maybe that'd be the best._

"An excellent choice. Well, if you're sure...OK...let's make you a GRYFFINDOR!"

The last word echoed through the whole hall and Harry knew that everyone had heard it. The Gryffindor table was cheering loudly as Harry walked over and sat down next to Hermione and across from Neville. Fred and George Weasley were yelling to the other tables about getting Potter. Ron, like all his brothers, became a Gryffindor as well.

At the High Table, Harry could see the teachers sitting. He recognized Dumbledore from his Chocolate Frog card, and he saw Hagrid and Quirrell. After three more people were Sorted, McGonagall rolled up the scroll of names and took the hat off the stool.

Once she had returned, Dumbledore stood up. He looked very happy to see all the students and was standing with his arms outstretched.

"Welcome all to another year at Hogwarts! Before we begin the feast, I have a few words: Nitwit, Blubber, Oddment, Tweak! Thank you!"

Everyone clapped and cheered, but Harry had no idea what to think. This wizard was known as one of the most powerful of the times, but he seemed quite odd. Looking down, he saw that the dishes and plates had magically been piled high with food! There was so much to choose all in one place, and Harry could barely even decide where to begin. Ron decided to take the direct approach and pile his plate high with almost everything in sight, earning a disapproving look from Hermione.

Harry had just started eating when a voice from behind him shouted a greeting. Turning, he was startled to see a ghost smiling at him.

"I'm the resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower and I'd like to welcome you into Gryffindor. I am Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpinton, but you can call me-"

"Hey!" Ron shouted, pointing. "I've heard of you! You're Nearly Headless Nick!"

"Sir Nicholas," the ghost muttered while glaring in the direction of the Weasley twins, clearly unamused with the nickname.

"How can you be _nearly_ headless?" Harry muttered to himself. Apparently the ghost heard this, for he unceremoniously pulled on his left ear, causing his neck to swing open like a hinge. Harry wished he could have met this ghost at a time other than a meal.

"Anyway," Nick continued, eager to move the conversation along, "I'll be expecting you all to help out in the House Championship! We're going to win this year, I just know it!" With that he left, muttering something about impoliteness and the like.

Soon everyone was stuffed, and the students began talking to each other and introducing themselves and what the lessons might be like. As he talked with Ron, Hermione, Neville, and other Gryffindors, Harry felt a pain in his forehead right where his scar was. Looking around, he saw a hook-nosed teacher next to Professor Quirrell looking directly at him. Getting the attention of Ron's oldest brother and Gryffindor prefect Percy, Harry was told that the teacher was Professor Snape. The pain was gone, but Harry's lingering unease remained.

After the food had disappeared (magically and non-magically) from the tables, Dumbledore spoke to the students once again. This time he spoke on a bit more serious note, first saying the caretaker forbid magic in the corridors, second setting a date for Quidditch tryouts, and third informing the students of places they were forbidden to go to. Harry thought it odd that one of the places, the third-floor-corridor on the right hand side, was forbidden since it was part of the school. Maybe they kept dangerous potions or beasts there.

After that, it was time for the students to head to bed. The Gryffindors were lead by Percy up marble staircases, through hidden doorways, and down corridors. They had to stop a couple of times. Once Neville took a wrong turn, and another time they were harassed by a poltergeist by the name of Peeves. Harry wondered if he could get his hands on anything a poltergeist would find valuable. Bargaining for favors with Peeves would be a great way to get revenge or prank people without being directly involved. He'd also have to meet the caretaker, Filch. By the time they stopped in front of a portrait of an exceptionally fat woman, Harry's legs felt like they could give at any second.

The woman in the painting asked for a password. When Percy gave it, her painting swung open to reveal a doorway. Inside was the Gryffindor common room, filled with cozy armchairs, a warm fireplace, and desks for doing class work. Harry, Ron, Neville, and two other boys named Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas went into their shared room. Inside were five four-posters with velvety red curtains for privacy. Harry saw that their trunks had been brought up as well. Moving to the bed next to his trunk, he fell onto the bed and soon fell asleep. His dreams were full of green light, talking turbans, and a laughing Malfoy and Professor Snape, but when he woke up he didn't remember any of them.

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**Author's Note: Well, thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed. Harry will hopefully have friends outside of Gryffindor in this story. Please review and let me know what you think! If you've got any suggestions or ideas that you feel would make this story better, I'm open to advice. Anyway, thanks again for reading. Until next time!**


	9. Exploration

**{I do not own Harry Potter. He belongs to J.K. Rowling. Yada. Yada. Yada. Etc. **sigh**}**

**Author's Note: Has it been a while! Wow. First off, my apologies to you all. I had no idea that there would be this huge of a gap in between. I had an **_**extremely**_ **busy fall/winter. Thankfully, though, it's pretty free now and I think I may be able to restart writing. Again, thank you all for your patience. Hopefully I can have the next chapter up relatively soon. Please leave a review, whether you like the story/chapter or not. I can always use more ideas for plot, writing critiques/suggestions, and just plain old encouragement. Anyway, enough of this, here's the chapter you've been waiting (and waiting) for. Enjoy!**

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Harry awoke quite suddenly, unsure at first of where he was. It took a few seconds of dazed observation for him to remember where he was. Hogwarts! After what had seemed an eternity of waiting, he was finally here. Looking around, filled with reverence for where he finally was, Harry suddenly wondered what had caused him to wake up. Judging from the small amount of light in the room, it was very early morning. A few months ago, Harry would have been up at this time anyway to do early chores. However, for the past couple of weeks his body had enjoyed and gotten used to being able to sleep in. Harry sat up and looked around, but he didn't see anything that would have woken him up. It was almost silent in the room, so it wouldn't have been a loud noise that awakened him. Or so he assumed.

"**CRASH!"**

Harry nearly jumped out of his bead in surprise. As quickly as it had begun, the noise was gone. Hearing grumbling, he turned to see his bunkmates slightly stirring in response to the noise.

"Must be Peeves…" grumbled Ron. "My brother Bill said Peeves is always causing some racket."

"My Grandmother said he was around in her day" Neville added.

"Just put a pillow over your head and go back to sleep. We've still got two hours until breakfast starts" groaned Dean.

"Sure! I'll help...brew your...potion...honey" muttered Seamus, who clearly was not fully awake. The others just ignored him and decided to take Dean's advice.

Soon the sounds of muffled snoring, mainly from the general direction of Ron's bunk, could be heard in the room. Harry, however, simply couldn't go back to sleep. He couldn't bear to do nothing while he was residing in easily the most fantastic place he had come across. The castle was huge, and a little bit of exploring probably couldn't hurt. He doubted anyone would be out yet, and it would be useful to get a feel for where things were in the immense castle. He could find where some of the classes would be. Or he could find places he could hide in, should the need ever arise.

Harry quietly slipped out of his room and made his way to the portrait door, stopping momentarily to take in the warmth of the lit fireplace and the cozy atmosphere of the Gryffindor Common Room.

"**CRASH!"**

Harry was once again startled by the loud noise. It sounded like the source had moved farther away since the last time, and Harry could easily picture Peeves the poltergeist pushing large objects onto the ground simply to make everyone's first full day a little more...enjoyable.

Harry quietly opened the door and looked down the corridor. Many wizards and witches in the portraits were sleeping, and the ones that weren't didn't seem to pay him any attention. Grinning, Harry started to explore.

The castle was huge! Harry was careful not to stray too far away from the Fat Lady portrait, not wanting to get lost. There were so many staircases, corridors, rooms, and nooks that Harry felt sure someone could spend years, decades, maybe even centuries, and still not know everything about the castle. Just in the small area Harry explored, there was enough to overwhelm him. He'd found many interesting paintings and statues, one of which Harry was quite sure had turned its head as he went by.

One of the most exciting discoveries had happened by accident, and Harry had almost fallen hard on his back in the process. He had been leaning against a wall, wondering where to go next, when he shifted and suddenly went right through the wall. Harry managed to catch himself, though, and he was quite thankful no one had been around to see his slip.

After much observation, trial, and error, Harry concluded that he had made an extremely useful discovery. When he pushed a certain brick on the wall, a section the size of a small doorway became intangible. If left alone, it would become solid again after about ten seconds. If Harry kept pushing the brick, the wall would remain intangible. Harry also discovered that the wall wouldn't become solid again if a body part was partially in the wall. He had accidently had a toe of his shoe sticking in the wall for about a minute before noticing and hastily pulling it out. He didn't even want to think about what would've happened if such a safeguard had not been in existence.

Harry was just about ready to see if there was anything on the other side of the wall when he heard a strange noise. It wasn't the same as the ruckus Peeves had been causing, but instead sounded like some sort of trapped animal. Curious, Harry followed the noise, which led him to a suit of armor. There was definitely something trapped inside of it, and it didn't sound happy. It also sounded small, though, and he couldn't stand not knowing what was in there. It sounded like it needed help.

Harry pulled his wand out and gripped it tightly in his hand. Even though he didn't really know how to do any magic, the wand made Harry feel a bit more secure. Perhaps it would make whatever was in there, if it were threatening, think twice about going for him. Harry slowly reached with his free hand toward the helmet, shielding his face with his wand hand's arm. Taking a deep breath, he lifted the visor of the helmet.

Something jumped out of the suit over his head and Harry tensed. Bracing himself, Harry slowly turned and found himself staring at...a cat. Harry breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that it wasn't attacking him on the spot or some sort of magical creature. It was just a cat.

It wasn't a very nice-looking cat. In fact, it almost looked like a stray. It was very scrawny, with big bulging eyes, and it fur was the color of dust. It was looking hesitantly at Harry, as if unsure what to do now that it was free. Bending down onto one knee, Harry hesitantly extended a hand.

Though he didn't have much experience with cats of his own, Harry had spent many an hour with Mrs. Figg back when he was with the Dursleys. Mrs Figg had babysat Harry, and it had never been fun. She always talked about her cats, showing pictures and telling stories about her precious felines. Sometimes she would make Harry care for the cats when there, and he had found out what they liked and disliked. Harry figured it couldn't hurt to comfort the cat a little.

Seeing Harry's hand, the cat had hesitated. However, when he started scratching its ears, it quickly relaxed. Coming up right next to Harry, the cat sat down on the ground and began to emit a low, raspy purr. Encouraged, Harry too sat down. Rough as it was, he found the cat's purr relaxing and felt a bit of pride for getting it to do so.

"Hey!" An older, scruffy looking man was coming toward Harry. Harry had seen him patrolling the corridors once previously during his explorations but had managed to avoid detection. Harry guessed that this man was the caretaker, Argus Filch.

"What do you think you're doing out here!" Filch growled. "And what are you doing to poor Mrs. Norris! Why, mark my words, boy, I'll see that you pay for-"

Filch suddenly stopped yelling, noticing for the first time that Mrs. Norris actually looked quite happy. Seeing his chance, Harry tried to explain what was going on. He certainly didn't want to get on bad terms with the caretaker on the first morning of his first year!

"I'm sorry sir." Harry spoke humbly, adding a 'sir' for good measure. He thought he saw a gleam in Filch's eyes, and smiled inwardly to himself.

"You see, I was going to head down for breakfast a bit early. I don't normally sleep in and that stupid ghost woke me up." Harry saw an angry glint in Filch's eyes at the reference to Peeves. Hopefully the mention of the poltergeist would push Filch's anger away from Harry and focus it on Peeves.

"Anyway," continued Harry, knowing that this part could be his ticket into Filch's good books since the caretaker had recognized the cat, "I heard a noise coming from this suit of armor that sounded like a cat. When I came to it and opened it, I found," Harry quickly tried to remember what Filch had called the cat, "Mrs. Norris! Yeah, I found Mrs. Norris trapped and helped her out. I tried to comfort her a bit and she didn't seem to mind." Mrs. Norris was still purring at the time, which Harry thought aided his case immensely.

Filch stared at the boy (who seemed strangely familiar, though he couldn't figure out why) and his beloved cat. He had to admit that she did look somewhat pleased. Plus it was only half an hour until breakfast anyway. It wasn't as if the boy had been out too early.

"I'll let you off this time boy," sighed the caretaker almost regretfully. "Just get your hide over to the Great Hall before I change my mind. And don't you dare make any mess or cause trouble on your way there. Or ever. You'll regret it then..." With that he scooped up Mrs. Norris and began muttering dark things about awful students.

Harry, not wasting any time, began making his way toward the Great Hall. He couldn't believe his luck! He hadn't gotten in trouble, largely thanks to his saving of Filch's cat, and he might have even made a good impression on the caretaker. Filch would be a tough nut to crack; he seemed to hate just about every student who had ever roamed Hogwarts, from what Harry could tell. However, if Harry could get on Filch's good side, maybe even get his help or approval at times, it would be huge.

Lost in thought, Harry almost bumped into another student. It seemed his time alone was about up; it was almost breakfast time. Harry started to apologize when he recognized who he had run into. It was Ernie Macmillan, the stout blonde boy he had talked to before the Sorting.

"Hello Harry! I see you're up a bit early too. That's good. There are so many useful things you can do in the morning. I like to wake up at least half an hour early each day just so I can have some extra time to study, read, or just think." Ernie smiled to himself, lost in thought for a few moments.

"Anyway, you should probably watch where you're going. You wouldn't want to bump into someone less agreeable than myself. I hear the caretaker, Mr. Filch, is a nasty piece of work"

"Yeah," agreed Harry, inwardly smiling. "Thanks for the advice, Ernie. By the way, I'd appreciate it if you didn't let people know I was out early, especially that Filch guy. It's fine I guess if you need to-"

"Say no more," Ernie interrupted. "I understand. You have a reputation to uphold, Boy-Who-Lived and all that." Standing up a little straighter and holding his chin up, he added in a much formal-sounding voice, "As a member of House Hufflepuff, it is my sworn duty to protect my friends and show them my steadfast loyalty." Seeing Harry's expression, Ernie stopped, smiled, and went back to his former posture.

"I wouldn't be surprised if some of the people in my House actually talked like that," he remarked, rolling his eyes. "I think a lot of people take all this House stuff a bit too seriously. Still, though, you're my friend Harry. I'm not going to try and get you in trouble. Friends help each other, and we keep each other safe."

Harry was a bit surprised at Ernie's loyalty and kindness. He hadn't expected the boy to befriend him like that. In truth, Harry hadn't even expected to form a close friendship with anyone (besides Hermione) within the first twenty-four hours at Hogwarts. However, as he and Ernie walked together, Ernie going on about how he couldn't wait for Quidditch and classes to start, Harry realized that he had been wrong. He didn't care one bit.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, there you go! First chapter in a very long time, and hopefully it's soon followed by more. It's a bit shorter than some of my other chapters, but I really wanted to get this done and show you guys that I'm still alive. Anyway, please leave a review and let me know what you think. I can always use suggestions and encouragement (I'm only human), and I also haven't written anything in a while so hopefully I'm not too rusty. Thank you for reading, and thank you all very much for your patience. Until next time!**


	10. Breakfast and Classes

**{Harry Potter no owned by me. Insert necessary mumbo jumbo here.}**

**Author's Note: Thanks to you all for your support. Don't forget to leave a review and let me know what you think. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

Once again, Harry found himself stunned when he entered the Great Hall. The ceiling of the castle once again looked marvelous. While there weren't quite as many students in it as there had been the night before, the vastness of the the Great Hall was still breath-taking.

Harry and Ernie parted ways with a wave, Ernie going to the Hufflepuff table and Harry making his way toward the Gryffindor one. None of his fellow first year Gryffindors were at the table yet, so Harry found a place for himself and sat down.

He'd only been seated for about a minute before Ron's twin brothers approached him.

"Hiya Harry!"

"It's your favorite twins"

"Fred!"

"and George!"

"Weasley!"

"Anyway, Harry"

"how're you doing?"

"not getting into trouble"

"are you?"

Each twin seemed to know what the other was thinking or something, for they seemed quite adept at finishing each other's sentences. Harry found this both amusing and slightly frustrating. It was entertaining, but it made it difficult to keep track of the conversation or who was talking to him.

When Harry shook his head, assuring the twins he hadn't gotten into any trouble, they looked at each other and grinned.

"That's good Harry"

"Not that there's anything wrong with trouble"

"As long as you're not caught"

"Speaking of which"

"Why were you out of bed so early this morning?"

"And what did Filch do to you when he caught you?"

Harry was quite surprised to say the least, if not a bit worried. He had thought he'd been quite stealthy this morning. The only people he'd talked to were Filch and Ernie, neither of whom would have gone blabbing to the twins. He'd seen a couple of people while wandering, but they hadn't done anything to suggest they'd seen him. If the twins could find him and spy on him so easily, could other students and staff detect him like this too? Regretfully, Harry figured that there was no point lying to twins; they seemed quite sure of themselves and were scarily well-informed of his actions.

"I was just exploring a bit. I couldn't sleep after all that racket from Peeves." The twins looked at each other knowingly. "When Filch found me, I had just rescued his cat from a suit of armor. When he found me, he sort of let me go because his cat seemed happy with me. How did you know I was out and that Filch found me?"

If Harry had been expecting some sort of clear explanation, he would have been disappointed. Fred and George only looked at each other again, smiling this time. They both leaned in close to Harry, George (at least he thought it was George) by the left ear, and Fred by the right.

"We think you're going to turn out real nicely" George whispered.

"Just be careful and don't get caught. Filch hates people like us." Fred whispered.

"Maybe someday you'll catch up with the Heirs of the Marauders."

"I'm not sure he has the right look of a Marauder though."

"Maybe we'll give you a bit of training."

"Until then, though, keep your mischief managed!"

With that the twins turned and walked away, laughing to each other as if they'd just shared some private joke. Harry was left sitting at the table much more confused than when he had sat down. Thankfully, it seemed everyone else was now up and ready for breakfast. Harry was soon joined by Hermione, Ron, Neville, Seamus, Dean, and some other first year Gryffindors he wasn't very familiar with yet.

The food, just like it had the night before, magically appeared on the plates. There was a huge variety, and Harry, to his disappointment, was soon stuffed. Never had he had such an amazing breakfast, and he had a feeling that tomorrow's would be just as good.

While they ate, the students talked and talked, getting to know each other a bit more. They discussed the castle, what the classes might be like, and their lives at home. Harry and Hermione were surprised and a bit glad to discover that quite a few other students had been raised in the Muggle world as well, including Dean. Ron and Seamus had just started attempting to explain Quidditch to Harry and Dean (Hermione was deemed a lost cost), when the Great Hall was filled with the sounds of hooting and of flapping wings.

Looking up, Harry that hundreds of owls were flying in. They began dropping things like packages and envelopes to students, including Ron. Soon the owls had left, and things returned to a relatively normal state. Harry hadn't gotten any mail, but he hadn't really expected any. He liked this method of mail delivery a lot more than the Muggle post office though. It was certainly a lot more exciting.

As the plates cleared themselves, Professor McGonagall started passing out papers to the Gryffindor students. Three other teachers were doing the same thing for the other House tables. When Harry got his, he saw that it was a schedule. Class would start at 9:00, and there would be four class periods until lunch. He would then have a break followed by two more class periods and dinner in the evening. Sadly, first years were supposed to be in the Common Rooms by 7:00. Harry had a feeling that he'd have some trouble following that, based on the fun he'd had before breakfast. He and his fellow Gryffindors soon left the table and began preparing for the start of their magical education.

* * *

Looking back, Harry's first week had been a blur of craziness, magic, new information, and other chaos. His exploration of the castle the first morning had been very helpful. Though it had been limited in area, he'd gotten a feel for the castle and where certain things were. He definitely would have been late to a couple classes otherwise. The odd disappearing wall he had discovered that morning, upon further inspection at 7:30 that evening, turned out to be the entrance to an empty room about the size of a broom closet. Harry had waited in there until he was sure no one else was around and quietly slipped back into the Common Room, his House mates none the wiser.

Classes had been extremely varied. Astronomy, which was actually every Wednesday at midnight, he simply couldn't understand the point of. The class was easy enough, but he just didn't see the use in learning about the stars and planets.

Herbology, which the Gryffindors had three times a week, had been interesting. There the students learned to identify and care for magical plants and fungi, all of which had some use in the magical world. The teacher, Professor Sprout, was a stout, kind witch who also happened to be the Head of Hufflepuff. Though she didn't show favoritism toward students of her own House, she certainly was very fond of Harry and Ernie, who were often paired together. She was always praising their hard work. No one, though, not Harry, Ernie, or even Hermione, could match Neville's aptitude. He seemed to have a way with the plants, and Herbology was easily his best subject. He gained a lot of confidence during that class, and he seemed very interested in the subject.

History of Magic should have been a fun class. In the very least, it should have been somewhat interesting. Things like goblin wars, revolutions, evil wizards, empires, and new inventions were things not out of place in an adventure novel. However, it was taught by Professor Binns, who turned out to be a ghost. The way he droned on and on, writing countless names and dates, was enough to even bore Hermione. That didn't stop her from taking enormous volumes of notes, though, which Harry sometimes needed to look at and Ron almost always did. Some students said that a very old Professor Binns had once fallen asleep in his chair. The next day he went to teach, leaving his body behind without even noticing. Harry wasn't sure if he believed the story, but it certainly didn't seem too far off.

Professor McGonagall, the Head of Gryffindor House and the person who had first introduced Harry to the magical world, taught Transfiguration. Harry could tell she wasn't one to cross. She wasn't ever mean, but she had an air of authority and a no-nonsense behavior. She had been strict before, when Harry first met her, but now she seemed even more so in her classroom. She had made it clear the very first day that foolishness would not be taken lightly. Professor McGonagall had impressed Harry and the other students when she suddenly turned her desk into a pig as a demonstration. However, they soon found out that their lessons and practice wouldn't be quite so dramatic. After a lot of practice, Hermione remained the only student to fully transform a match into a needle, although Harry's attempt hadn't been too far behind hers.

Charms had been interesting, especially with Professor Flitwick. He was the Head of Ravenclaw, and he was short. Very short. Extremely short. In fact, he had to stand on a pile of books just to see and be seen over his desk. He was energetic and eager to teach, however, and the class was enjoyable.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was, like History of Magic, a bit of a let down. Professor Quirrell hadn't changed much since Harry met him in Diagon Alley. He still stuttered with nearly every sentence, and he seemed even more paranoid than when Harry had last met him. The whole room smelled like garlic, supposed to ward off some vampire. All in all, Harry didn't think much of Quirrell. Harry wondered how long Quirrell would remain at Hogwarts if continued to act like he did, and he sort of hoped Quirrell would be replaced next year.

However, even if some of the teachers hadn't been too great, none of them were worse than Snape. Professor Severus Snape was the Head of Slytherin, and from the way he favored the Slytherins that much was obvious. Harry and the other Gryffindors had the misfortune to have double class with the Slytherins on Fridays.

From the moment Snape had entered the classroom, he seemed to have it in for Harry. He'd drilled Harry on questions that shouldn't have been asked for at least six or seven months of education. Even with the preparation Harry had done before coming to Hogwarts, he couldn't answer all the questions perfectly. Even when he got one right, or at least partially right, the Potions Master still made fun of him or said he was wrong, making him look like an idiot in from of the first year Gryffindors and Slytherins.

Neville was as bad with potions as he was good with plants. When he accidently messed up a potion, naturally causing an explosion leaving him covered in painful boils, Snape blamed Harry for the incident. He continually made fun of Harry's fame, which for the most part Harry hadn't even wanted much in the first place. He didn't like having everybody know who he was all the time, especially since his fame didn't seem to have any benefits.

All in all, Harry thought, as he looked back on his first week of classes, that despite certain disappointments and certain biased teachers, the week had gone pretty well. He had gotten to know his House mates a bit better, and had become good friends with Ernie. He'd talked to Terry Boot again briefly during Charms too. Harry found that, though he wasn't the smartest or most talented by any means, he still was doing pretty well. Focusing his magic and using enough power were a little more difficult than Harry had hoped, especially since other students weren't having much trouble with it, but he wasn't worried. His skill would come with time and practice, he figured. Regardless, he was definitely among the top academic students of his year. Harry couldn't believe how much better his life had become in such a short time.

An indignant hoot brought Harry back into the present. He bid Hedwig farewell as she carried off his letter and went to join Hermione and Ron. They were going with him to see Hagrid, who had invited Harry to see him, since the students had Fridays off. As long as they avoided the subject of magical creatures, Harry had a feeling the visit would be quite fun.

* * *

Head Goblin Ragnok smiled to himself as he read the letter he had received from Harry Potter.

_To the Head Goblin of Gringotts;_

_First off, I would like to congratulate you on your wonderful product. The trunk you sent for me to test has worked very well, exceeding all expectations in quality, performance, and convenience._

_As I have finished my initial review of the trunk, which I will of course continue to use and evaluate, I was wondering if you had anything else in need of testing. Specifically, anything useful for a bit of entertainment at Hogwarts._

_There is a poltergeist, Peeves, who frequently enjoys pranking students at the castle. He's not a problem at all, though sometimes he can be a hinderance to myself and my companions. If he could be convinced to leave us alone, or perhaps to perform certain favors, it would be most beneficial. I feel that he would most value items useful for actions of a pranking nature. _

_Naturally, I would also test these products myself in order to give you a first-hand, accurate review of them. Hopefully you have some things in your stock that would be useful for what I have mentioned above. Thank you for your business, which I hope will be profitable to us both for a long time._

_Your Product Tester,_

_Harry Potter_

Ragnok smiled to himself as he read the letter. He could certainly think of a few items that would be useful in Harry's negotiations. The boy was certainly his father's son, following in James' footsteps without even knowing it. Ragnok sent word for Griphook to come to his office and leaned back, thinking about Harry Potter and what the boy would have been like had he been a goblin.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, there you are! I didn't think I'd have this chapter done so quickly, but here it is. Thanks to all my readers and reviewers, who hopefully will be in greater number after this (hint hint). If you haven't noticed by now, I've found that I really enjoy foreshadowing and allusions to future plot and the actual books, so see if you can find everything. Some are a lot harder to spot than others! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I think now all the exposition and set-up is done, so we can start getting into the real story. Until next time!**


	11. Huts and Broomsticks

**{I don't own HP and that really sucks. What a shame! What a shame! What a shame! What a shame! I would make big bucks. **To the tune of 'Row Row Row Your Boat." I also do no own that.** }**

**Author's Note: Well, now that most of the exposition is done we can finally get to the thick of the story! Hopefully things will get even more interesting from here. Please leave a review and let me know how you like the story/chaper. I'll try to answer any questions without giving anything away. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

It was a little after three, and Harry, Hermione, and Ron were enjoying the beautiful day on their way to see Hagrid. None of them had seen much of the grounds prior to this. The castle was big, but the grounds of Hogwarts were even bigger. Ron had eagerly pointed out the way to the Quidditch field, but Harry didn't want to keep Hagrid waiting.

They soon reached Hagrid's small wooden house, which was right on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. While it didn't seem too bad at the moment, Harry knew he'd never want to be there at night. Even in Muggle forests, a lot of dangerous things came out at night. And most of those dangerous things could see a lot better in the dark than humans could. Hopefully, he'd never have to be in a situation where going out there in the dark was necessary.

Hagrid's house was extremely small, Harry realized upon arrival, especially when considering the size of the occupant. In fact, it was more of a hut than a house, for it only appeared to have one room. Outside of it, next to the front door, sat a pair of galoshes and a rather dangerous-looking crossbow, though Harry had to admit that a non-dangerous crossbow probably wouldn't be of much use.

Approaching the door, Harry knocked and was greeted with spree of scratching and loud, echoey barks. Hermione and Ron each took a not-so-small step back. Harry was about to follow when he heard Hagrid's voice.

"Get back you dumb dog!" Hagrid's muffled voice could be heard, after which there was a bit more scuffling before he opened the door.

"Sorry about that. Fang's just a little bit excited is all. Hiya Harry! Glad you could make it. I see you brought some friends along."

Harry smiled and nodded, gesturing first to Hermione and then to Ron. "You've already met Hermione when we are Diagon Alley. This is Ron Weasley."

"Another Weasley. I can't keep track anymore of how many times I've chased yer twin brothers away from this forest. Anyway, come on in! I'm makin' some tea, and I've also got some rock cakes for yeh!"

Ron eagerly made his way in. Harry and Hermione, who knew Hagrid a bit better than Ron and didn't like the sound of 'rock cakes', hastily claimed that they were full after having a large lunch before following Ron inside.

The house, unlike Harry's magical trunk, was just as small on the inside as it appeared from the outside. However, while small, it seemed cozy enough. In the far corner was an enormous bed covered with a patchwork quilt. Nearby was a fireplace, on top or which Hagrid was boiling water for tea in a copper kettle. In the middle of the house, where Ron was now sitting, was a wooden table. Above it, hanging from the ceiling, were some hams and pheasants.

Hagrid was standing by the door, smiling, and he gestured for them to sit down. At his side was a large boarhound, obviously the "Fang" whom Hagrid had been talking to. After Harry and Hermione had joined Ron at the table, Hagrid took the kettle and poured the water into a teapot. He also put some rock cakes on a plate and put it on the table.

Harry and Hermione were very happy to have claimed to be full, for the rock cakes were rightfully named. They looked like hard lumps with raisins in them. Hesitantly, Ron picked one up and took a bite. The crunch that followed caused Harry and Hermione to cringe, and Ron slowly tried to stash the rock cake under his chair.

While Hagrid didn't notice Ron, Fang certainly did. Admittedly, Harry thought, Ron's movement did look like he was trying sneak Fang food under the table. Regardless of Ron's intent, Fang quickly rushed over to Ron and wolfed down the rock cake. Ron was happy with that at first, but he was considerably less so when Fang didn't leave, instead resting his large head on Ron's knee and proceeding to drool. All Ron could do was close his eyes and try not to think about why his leg felt wetter and wetter.

Hagrid, unaware of what had just transpired, began to ask the trio questions about school and their classes. Harry and Hermione began talking about their classes while Ron threw in the occasional affirmative grunt, still trying not to think about exactly where he was.

They all agreed that Transfiguration was a bit slow at first, but they knew things would get more exciting and complicated as they got more experienced. Harry's current favorite was Charms, and Hermione (of course) couldn't decide on a favorite. Ron was more vocal on the classes he disliked, namely History of Magic and Potions.

"Ron, both of those classes have such potential. Maybe you're just not applying yourself enough," Hermione chided.

"Or maybe it's the professors," Harry remarked darkly.

"Harry, both of the professors are very qualified to teach in their respective subjects. Professor Binns has a lot of experience, and Professor Snape is well-known in the magical world for his skill." Despite any person opinions, Hermione felt she had to defend the professors. That was how it should be, she thought. That's what she had always been taught and the rules she had been given.

"Hermione, come on. Binns is a ghost, and he should have been replaced long before he died. The guy's more effective than sleeping pills. And where to start with Snape? The man's horribly biased, doesn't help students who need it, doesn't encourage learning, and to top it off, he seems to hate me. He's out to make every class a living nightmare for me!"

"Rubbish," Hagrid answered. "There's no reason for him to. He's got tons of students, Harry. Why should he single you out? Do you really think he takes the time, after hours, to specifically think up ways to hurt you? No. After all, what's not to like?" Hagrid finished with a reassuring grin toward Harry and a pat on the back.

Seeing that he couldn't make the others see, Harry dropped the subject. He knew the truth, though. He could see it in the man's eyes when he looked at Harry. For whatever reason, Snape hated Harry. And there was nothing Harry could do about it. Maybe.

"Aren't there any sort of evaluations of teachers here?" he asked. "Is there some sort of complaint system or some general way of keeping teachers in line?"

"I think all Hogwarts stuff goes to the Board of Governors," Ron pointed out, finally coming back into reality. It seemed Fang had gotten bored and had moved to sit over by the fire. "My dad was talking about them a while back. I think Malfoy's dad got on it somehow. Dad was saying that he couldn't believe anyone in their right mind would put that guy in charge of a school. Plus, Snape and Malfoy are old pals, Dad said, so good luck getting him kicked out that way."

However, Hagrid shook his head. "The Board's in charge of a lot of stuff these days, but the staff isn't one of them. Pretty new actually. I think I've got it somewhere…" Hagrid went over to a stack of papers and picked up the one on top. "They talked about in today's issue of the _Daily Prophet_."

Holding up the paper, Hagrid began to read an article about a recent law change. Apparently the Minister of Magic had pushed for (and succeeded with) a motion that gave the authority for hiring, assessing, and firing staff of magical schools solely to the Headmaster.

As interesting as that might have been, an article on the back of the paper caught Harry's eye. It described an ongoing investigation about a Gringotts vault break-in. Coincidentally, the date was the same as when he and Hagrid had been Gringotts. The estimated time was quite close to when they'd been there as well. A bit too coincidental, Harry thought. Hagrid didn't seem like quite the bank-robbing type, but he was certainly quite big. Harry could also remember him acting strange that day and that he had talked to McGonagall about picking some mysterious thing up.

"Hagrid," Harry interrupted, "have you seen this article?" Harry watched Hagrid closely as he flipped the paper around and began reading, looking for any reactions that would hint to what had happened.

"Yeah, a bit," Hagrid admitted. "Didn't really think Gringotts could get broken into, especially without catching the guy who did it."

As he continued reading, though, his eyes grew wider. "Blimey," he muttered, thinking none of the children were listening, "that's the same vault I emptied out for Dumbledore. Good thing too. Wonder if he knows about this."

When Hagrid looked up, Harry made sure to be intensely staring at Ron and Hermione, pretending to be following their conversation. Apparently, Ron had said something about Flying lessons starting soon, which Hermione was not looking forward to.

"I mean honestly, there are much better ways to travel. Even Muggle transport is better than a broomstick, with your being sheltered from the elements and all."

"A broom's amazing. It's such a great feeling, soaring up there and feeling wind in your face. And without brooms, there'd be no Quidditch, and we wouldn't want that!" Ron laughed to himself, missing Hermione's comment under breath about how she would be quite happy if Quidditch had never been invented.

Seeing an opening, Harry informed Hagrid that they should probably get going because they didn't want to miss dinner. Hagrid regretfully agreed, but he gave them each a handful of rock cakes. "You can save 'em for dessert! Don't worry, they won't get stale!"

As they walked back, Harry reflected on what had gone on. Despite the rock cakes, things had gone pretty well. He'd talked with Hagrid, Ron, and Hermione and learned a few things. Maybe he could throw the rock cakes at Malfoy and his goons if the Slytherin tried to confront Harry again like on the train. He hadn't seen much of Malfoy this week, besides in Potions as Snape's pride and joy. Maybe he could throw a rock cake at Snape. As he walked back to the castle, Harry envisioned a certain Potions Master coming into contact with a certain hard lump with raisins.

* * *

It was the day of the first Flying lessons, and Harry was not looking forward to them. Besides in Potions, he had managed to avoid seeing or hearing Draco Malfoy. However, when looking at a notice pinned up in the Common Room, he saw that Gryffindors would be having their lessons with none other than the Slytherins.

For the past week of Potions class, Malfoy had gone on and on about his skill on a broomstick. He'd complained loudly to anyone who would listen about the rule preventing first year students from having brooms. He would also tell stories of his marvelous feats, such as the time he was chased by Muggle flying machines and the time when he taught some World Cup Quidditch star a few tricks.

Malfoy was obviously making up his wondrous stories, but he wasn't the only one. Almost all the male students from magical homes would talk about Quidditch and their skill on a broom. Seamus supposedly had a broom given to him by a leprechaun, and Ron could apparently ride broom through the woods with his eyes closed. Harry would have paid big money to see Ron try to attempt said feat. Neville, who had never been on a broom in his life, was one of the only ones that didn't try and boast.

While Harry knew that Malfoy was lying about his feats, he also knew that Malfoy probably at least had ridden a broom. Unfortunately, that put him and almost everyone else above Harry. While Harry wasn't worried about riding a broom, what did make him feel anxious was the prospect of looking like an idiot in front of Malfoy and the other Slytherins.

Hermione, too, was not looking forward to the Flying lessons. She had been researching for days, trying to study technique and tips. The thought of being up in the air, sitting only on a broomstick, terrified her. Harry had tried to reason with her, and to point out that she couldn't learn everything in a book, but she wouldn't hear a word.

While he hadn't researched with books, Harry had talked to Ernie and Terry about brooms. Both had tried to help Harry as best they could.

"I haven't ridden too many times," Terry had replied, "but my mom's got an older broom at our house that I used to go out on. She was a Chaser on her House Quidditch team, so she loved giving me pointers. Just keep your grip firm yet relaxed. Don't just sit stiff as a board. You've got to feel your way through. That's what she always told me."

When Harry asked him how hard flying was, Terry smiled. "My old dad's been up on a broomstick a few times, and he's a Muggle. Don't worry, Harry, you'll be fine."

Ernie had been of a similar opinion. "Riding a broom's actually quite easy. I've done it plenty of times. Even got an Uncle who used to be a Beater for Puddlemere United. It doesn't take much to learn how and become adequate, but it takes a great deal of skill to be more than just good. Just about anybody can ride a broom, but very few can master the finer points of flying."

Their advice had reassured Harry of his safety, but he still didn't feel any better about seeing Malfoy.

At three-thirty, Harry went with other first-year Gryffindors onto the grounds for the first flying lesson. It was a clear, sunny day, perfect flying conditions according to some of the more knowledged students. The Slytherins were there, standing by a bunch of line up brooms.

Harry had heard students of all Houses complain about the school brooms. Some said that they vibrated or got hot with too much altitude. Others said they couldn't fly straight. Fred and George claimed that the brooms shot fireworks if you hung upside down, but Harry had a feeling they just wanted to see if Ron was gullible enough to try it.

When the Gryffindors arrived, the instructor, Madam Hooch, told them all to stand by a broom. When they each had a broom, she told them to extend their right hand and say, 'Up.'

Harry's broom jumped into his hand on his first try, but he was one of the few who had succeeded. Some brooms rolled around a bit or came up halfway. Only a few, including Malfoy and Harry, had brooms in their hands. It seemed to Harry that a much more sensible approach would be to simply pick up the broom, but he figured that suggesting it wasn't worth it.

When everyone was holding a broom in one hand, though Harry suspected some had cheated and just picked it up, Madam Hooch showed them how to grip their brooms. Harry was quite amused when Hooch told Malfoy he was doing it completely wrong, especially since she had just come from telling him he was a natural.

After what seemed like a very long time, they were finally ready to actually fly. They were to kick off, levitate a couple feet up, and then come down. Madam Hooch was just about to let everyone go when Neville started going up.

Neville clearly had no idea what to do and had obviously kicked off accidentally. Hooch tried to help, but Neville was up over twenty feet before he came back down hard. Without his broom.

Rushing to the facedown boy on the ground, she declared he only had a broken wrist. Madam Hooch informed the students that she would be taking Neville to the hospital wing. Any student who used their broom while she was gone would be out of Hogwarts, she claimed. With her short, gray hair and yellow, hawk-like eyes, she definitely looked intimidating. Harry watched as she helped a sniffling Neville back into the castle.

The moment she was gone, Malfoy burst into laughter. "Maybe if he'd thought to fall on his ass he'd be in better shape about now." The blonde boy then walked over to a shiny glass orb that had fallen from Neville's pocket. Harry recognized it as the Remembrall Neville had recently gotten from his grandmother, which he regularly needed to stay on top of things.

"Hand it over, Malfoy." Harry's voice was low, but all the students heard it. It wasn't a suggestion.

"And why would I do that, Potter? I think I'll take it up here. Plant it on a castle roof. Maybe on a tree, or in the middle of the lake. Or perhaps I'll see how high I can drop it from before it shatters." With that, Malfoy climbed onto his broom and sailed into the air.

Harry went for his own broom. He knew that it probably wasn't a good idea, but he didn't care. He had an undeniable urge to fly, and he knew he'd never get anywhere in normal flying class. If he got Neville's stolen Remembrall, he'd have a good excuse and maybe look like a bit of a hero in the process. Ignoring Hermione's protests, Harry climbed onto his broom and kicked off the ground.

It was more wonderful than he could possibly have imagined. The feelings of freedom and joy as he soared into the air were unlike anything he'd ever felt before. Even if the broom was low in quality, Harry still felt he could make it do whatever he wished it to. It was like an extension of his body.

He was brought back down to earth, though thankfully only figuratively, when he spotted Malfoy staring at him. The pale, blonde couldn't seem to comprehend what Harry had just done. He had planned to soar above Potter's head, cuffing him occasionally on the head. His father wouldn't let anything bad happen to him, so there was no risk of getting in trouble. Malfoy hadn't expected Harry to follow him. He certainly hadn't expected Harry to be at all decent on a broom.

"One last chance" Harry growled. That was enough for Malfoy, who dove back down to the ground. However, before retreating, he took Neville's Remembrall and threw it as hard as he could.

For Harry, time seemed to slow. He watched the orb leave Malfoy's hand and soar away in the other direction. He leaned forward, guiding his broom toward it while he accelerated, wind rushing past his ears. He then went into a steep dive as the ball sank in the air. Reaching his arm out, he grew closer and closer, even as he got closer and closer to a castle wall and to the ground.

Not a moment too soon, his hand connected with the Remembrall, and he leveled off only a short distance from the wall. Only short distance from Professor McGonagall's room, he realized. And there happened to a be a window right in front of him. A window that showed the stern, angry-looking expression on the face of Professor McGonagall, who was standing right next to the window. Harry couldn't hear what she said, but he could read her lips well enough to see that she was screaming his name. She then rushed off, no doubt on her way to the grounds where the rest of the students were located.

Harry began to sink slowly to the ground, the thoughts coursing through his mind consisting only of _crap_ and _I am so screwed_.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, there you go. A bit longer than some of the more recent chapters, but I think you guys will be fine with that. I don't know about you guys, but I'm liking the way things are turning out in this story. I'm getting further and further from the books as I go on, but that was the intention. No point in writing the same story just reworded a bit. Anyways, please leave a review and let me know how you're liking things, especially with where the story is going. I'm hoping to bring the inter-House friendships out a bit more, and Ron is slowly becoming more of a target for pranks and jokes. (He might be a victim of some product testing.) But please, let me know how I'm doing. Thanks for all of your support; I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Until next time!**


	12. New Toys

**{I don't own Harry Potter, despite several attempts to rewrite the past. Time travel is harder than you'd think}**

**Author's Note: Thanks for reading this. I hope you like it. Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

As Professor McGonagall came closer and closer, Harry could almost feel his newly obtained hopes and dreams getting farther and farther away. Had he really come all this way, learned so much, and experienced such hope, only for it to be squashed because he had simply rode on a broom? It didn't seem like he'd be kicked out, assuming that Madam Hooch had been joking somewhat, but things still looked bad.

"Never...of all the things...ever seen anything like this," Professor McGonagall stopped muttering as she came up next to Harry, fixing upon him one her most deadly glares. Harry tried to defend his actions, claiming to have acted bravely to protect Neville's honor and possessions. He had thought that would have softened her up for sure, making her proud of his supposed Gryffindor spirit, but she barely blinked. Even when some of the other Gryffindors agreed with Harry and tried to help, McGonagall didn't appear interested. Instead, she sternly instructed Harry to follow her, and they went back inside the castle.

McGonagall briskly walked through the castle, Harry following behind her. She didn't say a word to Harry as they went, and the silence was almost more frightening than angry words. Harry could stand people yelling at him, but he didn't like the mysteriousness of silence. It made things seem more suspenseful.

At first, Harry was unsure of where they were going. He had assumed he'd be taken to see Dumbledore or perhaps Madam Hooch. If McGonagall had simply wanted to give him a detention or deduct points, she would have done it on the grounds. That made Harry nervous. Perhaps he had violated more rules than he'd thought. However, as they started going down more areas, Harry started to have a guess about where they were going. That guess didn't make any sense, though. When he and Professor McGonagall arrived next to the Charms classroom, Harry's suspicions were confirmed, but he still had no idea why McGonagall had brought him here.

"Professor Flitwick," she called, after opening the door and poking her head in, "May I borrow Wood for a moment?"

"Of course, Professor McGonagall! Go on, Wood. You won't miss much." Professor Flitwick's squeaky voice came from within the classroom, and Harry realized there was a lesson going on. Wood, it seemed, was a student!

As it turned out, Wood was quite a big student. The fifth year Gryffindor was well-built, and he might have looked intimidating if he chose. Right now, however, he seemed quite confused.

McGonagall turned and ushered them into a nearby classroom. As she shut the door, Harry caught a gleam in her eye that he was fairly sure hadn't been there before. She didn't look very angry now. It almost looked like she was plotting something and was quite happy with how it looked to turn out. She then came back to the two Gryffindors.

"Potter, this Oliver Wood, Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. Wood, meet Harry Potter...your new Seeker."

Wood suddenly looked like a child on Christmas Day who had just unwrapped the toy he had wanted for months. He began looking back and forth between Harry and McGonagall as if he was certain any minute either he'd wake up or they'd start laughing.

Though Harry didn't know exactly what a Seeker was or how Quidditch was played, he could clearly see what was going on. Quidditch was a magical sport, but it was still a sport. Obviously his House Quidditch team had an empty spot, but the Captain couldn't find anyone good enough. Until now. This was far better than he could have hoped! That broom ride had been amazing, and now Harry was wanted on the Quidditch team, with which he'd fly even more.

As these thoughts went through his head, though, Harry made sure to keep his expression neutral. They needed him, after all. They sounded desperate. Might as well take advantage of that.

Wood seemed to have gotten over his speechlessness and turned to Professor McGonagall. "You're serious, Professor?"

"Of course," McGonagall confirmed. "I saw the boy first hand. Caught a Remembrall in his hand after what had to have been a fifty foot dive. All without a scratch, and on what's probably his first time with broomstick. I'd say the he's a natural."

Wood looked even more excited, if that was even possible. "He's the right build, too," he remarked as he looked Harry up and down appraisingly. "Small and quick. What do you think, Potter? Fancy a spot on the Gryffindor Quidditch as the youngest player in a century?"

Harry inwardly smiled. Show time. He took a slow, deep breath.

"Um, I don't know. Maybe. I'm not sure I'd like it much, though." The speed at which their expressions changed from joy to terror was almost comical, and it took all Harry's control not to burst out laughing.

"Oh you'd love it! You'd get to spend lots of time on a broom. Go to practices. Befriend older students. You'd be the envy of all your friends." Wood was clearly panicking now.

"Yeah, see, that's a bit of the problem," Harry ventured. "I'm quite busy with classes and homework now, and practice might interfere with that. Plus, I don't have a broomstick, and first years aren't allowed to have them." Wood looked about ready to cry, and Professor McGonagall stepped in.

"I'll straighten things out with Albus. We simply can't have a team like last year's again. I couldn't look Severus in the face for weeks. If classwork's the issue, I'll do whatever I can to help. Maybe I'd even be prepared to exempt you from some homework if things get too busy. As for the broom, I'm sure we can dip into the Quidditch budget a bit and get you some good equipment. As a Seeker, you'll need the best."

Satisfied, Harry decided to give the two a break. "I guess, when you put that way, it does sound pretty good." Harry brightened up a bit, and McGonagall and Wood brightened as well. "Do you think I could pick the stuff out myself? I love seeing all the cool items there are for sale."

McGonagall saw her chance and readily agreed. Harry was told to meet Wood next week for some introductory training, but he was also told to keep things relatively quiet. Whether that was to prevent jealousy or to make him a secret weapon, Harry wasn't sure. It didn't really matter much to him, though. He now had some lenience with homework and about 400 Galleons to get a broom and Quidditch supplies with. Wood had eagerly shared his opinions on the top brands for brooms and supplies.

"I'll be sure to stay healthy," Harry joked as they left, everyone quite happy with how things had went. "There've been some potions accidents and explosions lately. Wouldn't want to get injured and not be able to play."

As he walked away, he saw McGonagall stiffen. No doubt she and Severus would soon have a talk about the safety of his classes. There was no way she'd allow the Slytherin Head to ruin her House's Quidditch Cup chances. Harry smiled. Maybe he couldn't do anything about Snape himself, but the staff was quite another matter.

* * *

Two days later, during breakfast, Harry received his first letter via owl post. He also received his second. The first was the order form from Quality Quidditch Supplies he had sent for. When he'd said he liked looking at all the things he could buy in the magical world, Harry had been quite truthful. There was still a lot more of the magical world for him to discover. It would be interesting to see all there was he could buy, especially when price wasn't much of a barrier.

The second letter had even more potential for fun. When he saw that it was from Gringotts, Harry made sure no one was paying attention before reading. The letter itself was nothing special, but what it had to say was. Apparently, there was a parcel waiting on Harry's bed that no one else could see. He was advised to not open it when anyone else was around. It also suggested that he bring his trunk with him when opening it for storage. That alone sounded promising.

That night, Harry once again found himself out after curfew. It was becoming a regular pastime of his. If the other students suspected anything, which Harry highly doubted, they didn't speak up. He had grown a lot better at hiding and staying in the shadows. With his trunk and the mysterious parcel stashed in his robe pockets, Harry made his way to his favorite hiding spot: the room hidden with the disappearing wall, which Harry had started calling the Phantom Room. It probably wasn't the best name he could have come up with, but since he wasn't telling anyone else about it anytime soon, Harry didn't care. Going through walls like that made him feel like a ghost.

Once he entered, Harry sat down on the floor. He made a mental note to remember to sneak in some furniture of some sort for the empty room. Setting his trunk in the corner of the room and enlarging it, Harry then set the parcel in the middle of the room. It was tied very neatly around the middle, like how one would tie a shoelace, and there were instructions on the top that warned the user to stand back after undoing the string.

Harry pulled one of the strings, undoing the knot, and nimbly jumped back. After a few seconds, the parcel started to twitch. After about ten seconds of twitching, it slowly began to grow and unfold until finally Harry found himself staring at a large cabinet.

The cabinet looked to be around six feet tall, and it was almost too big for the Phantom Room. It was made of mahogany, and it looked very impressive. Engraved upon it was a fancy-looking P, and on the other side Harry recognized the Potter Family Crest. Curious, he walked around, observing the cabinet, and found a note attached to one side.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_Thank you for your review of our trunk. This will be very helpful in getting the prototype mass produced eventually. Upon receiving your letter, we realized that, since you are now in school, you are entitled to this cabinet. It has been in your family for generations, and it was used by both your father and your paternal grandfather. It is tradition for first year Potters to receive it, and it is kept at Gringotts when no Potters are currently in school. It contains many things deemed useful or entertaining for school-related purposes. We do not currently have any new products ready for testing, but we have several prototypes that will be ready soon. We hope this will be enough to satisfy your needs for now._

_Gringotts_

Harry looked at the cabinet with new awe. This was something his father and grandfather had used while they were in school! Just looking at it, he felt a bit of connection to them and his family.

With a bit of reverence, Harry reached out and grabbed the handle and pulled. It didn't budge. Confused, Harry tried again. The door still didn't open. Unsure of what he was doing wrong, Harry pulled a third time. When that didn't work, Harry looked around a bit, confused. He then noticed a letter on the ground that he was sure hadn't been there before. Harry picked it up and read it.

_Dear Harry,_

_First off, for some reason you're reading quite an outdated note. Since you've been born, I've replaced the note in here about every year or so. Anyways, you should be reading this when you're 11 years old, a first year at Hogwarts. Right now you're only one year old, so that's a bit a of a time gap. Hopefully, it's because I've been a moron and forgotten to update this note. Feel free to write to me and tell me what an idiot I am. However, if I'm dead when you're reading this, then I am truly sorry for you. Well, I guess I'm sorry for me too, but hopefully I got killed in some badass way slaying Death Eaters. We are at war right now, you know. If I'm dead, though, that means I haven't been there to show you the way or be the father I was supposed to be. I hope you can forgive me for that._

_Enough of all that serious stuff though. Heh. Sirius stuff. I'm sorry. That was pretty bad. Anyways, you're at Hogwarts now, son! Some of my best memories happened there. It's a time for you to meet friends and enemies, learn a bunch of crap, and just have a great time. And by a great time, I mean an amazing, superb, memorable time! I hope they still talk about the Marauders. I'm quite proud of that imprint we left. Featuring me, Prongs, as well as Moony, Padfoot, and Wormtail (who I'm sure you can figure out the identities of). Anyway, as my son, I expect you to keep the tradition alive. That's what this trunk is for._

_This trunk, Harry, is amazing. It was one of the main factors of my success! I'm pretty sure your grandfather swore by it. It's got the supplies for just about any prank you could think of, as well as many other nice little toys. It's huge, too. Even with all my use of it, I'm pretty sure there's still a lot of goodies I never discovered. There are drawers within drawers within drawers within...you get the picture. There are some books and journals too if you need some help planning. Some of them are pretty advanced magic, though, so stay at your level. The cabinet is protected with a password, which is "Let's have some fun." The password and the touch of a Potter will open it._

_There are some noteworthy things in here that I feel I should mention, for they're too important to miss. There's the Potter broom, a gift to the Potter family from the goblins. The thing is sweet! Its speed and maneuverability are legendary. I don't think those mass produced brooms Diagon Alley sells will be at its level until long after you're out of school. It appears to most as a standard broom, usually the best one on the current market. However, you can allow certain people to see its true appearance if you wish. It's also got strong curse defenses and can be very useful if you're ever in danger. I think it can turn you invisible, too, and shoot fireworks out the end. I never used those features, though. Most brooms didn't do that in my day (and probably won't now), so it's a bit risky if you're keeping the broom a secret, which I recommend._

_There's also the family Invisibility Cloak. This one's been in our family for ages, and it seems pretty much indestructable. It too has a very good resistance to magic. I had another one that I lent to Dumbledore a while ago, but that was just my spare. He'll probably give it back (if he hasn't already), but use this one instead. It's way better._

_Finally, there's the usual array of Dungbombs, crazy potions, and funny disguises that are essential to any true prankster. Have fun with these! I think there's some catnip, too, to ward off all those student cats. I'll leave you to discover all that treasure on your own. Just follow the main rule of pranking: don't get caught._

_Above all, though, Harry, I want you to enjoy your time here. Hogwarts is a magical place, and I don't mean that just literally. You'll meet lifelong friends here, and what you do here can shape your future. This is your time, your school. Who knows? Maybe your actions will impress some lovely lady, like what happened with me (though she denies it firmly). If you continue to have my looks, though, I think you'll have plenty of ladies swarming around you. I might be a slight bit biased, though. Have fun, learn, and stay safe. Your mom would probably be mad at me if I added "in that order" to that last sentence, so I'll leave it out. Just remember, Harry, that your mom and I love you and wish you the best._

_Your Father,_

_James Potter_

As Harry finished reading the letter, staring at the signed name at the bottom, a few tears rolled down his cheek. He'd never known his parents, and this letter made him wish he had even more. He'd heard a lot lately of how much he looked like his father, who was now more than some meaningless name. He put the letter in the safe of his trunk, knowing that he'd treasure it for coming directly from one of his parents.

Harry opened the trunk and stared at the wonders inside. He found the items his father had mentioned and also some others that looked interesting. He could have explored for days, but it was already late. He was supposed to have been asleep long ago.

Harry donned his new Invisibility cloak and pocketed his shrunk trunk, but he decided to leave the Potter Cabinet in the Phantom Room. He could use the room as a base, perhaps. Harry stepped out, invisible, and made his way back to the Common Room, thinking about how he could use both Filch and Peeves to aid him in honoring and continuing his father's legacy.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, that may have been a bit sentimental, but it was worth it. Harry's now armed with all kinds of useful items, including the Invisibility Cloak. I don't have many ideas for big pranks yet, so if you have ideas PM me or something. Anyways, I hope you liked the chapter. As always, please leave a review. I can always use encouragement/advice/critiquing. Until next time!**


	13. Not Much of a Duel at Not Midnight

{**There once was poor, young author who didn't own Harry P. His fanfiction name was PizzaPi (314) and he went home and cried softly. **I hope you know this theme**}**

**Author's Note: A big thank you to you all for reading. Please let me know what you think. Enjoy!**

* * *

Harry awoke early and tired but still quite happy. He had barely been able to sleep after returning to the Gryffindor Common Room. There had just been so much to take in that it was overwhelming. He had spent half the night plotting, and he'd barely scratched the surface of all the potential. He had an Invisibility Cloak! He'd been somewhat stealthy before; now he could get away with practically anything if he was careful about it! The Potter broom, even if he repressed it a bit to prevent drawing attention, would be a great. Plus it saved him a bunch of Galleons, which he had no plans of returning. And, among all the items he had gotten, he had received a priceless connection to the Potters who had gone before him.

As Harry lay in his bed, thinking about what to do first, his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of explosive flatulence coming from a snoring Ron's bunk. Harry and his other roommates had no idea why this kind of thing happened. They'd heard of sleep-walking and sleep-talking, but this just seemed ridiculous. The best they could figure was that it had something to do with Ron's immense diet. Regardless, the boys had learned by now that the safest option was to simply vacate the premises. As he and Neville rushed out, followed closely by Dean and Seamus, Harry had a sudden thought. He needed a test subject, to get used to some of his new items, didn't he?

Right breakfast that morning, as he was thinking about the things his dad had said about being a Marauder, Harry couldn't help but overhear a conversation going on between Fred and George. Quietly, he made his way toward the twins.

"I still say we go with the toilet seat. The classic approach. It's simple, fast, and a lot less likely to come back and bite us in the butt." George cringed at the implications he had just made.

"You really want to go the easy way?" Fred questioned. "It would be good, I admit, but there's so much more potential with the shower heads. It might be a bit harder to set up, but it'll be so much more hilarious and easier to see when it works."

"Won't it be harder to get off, though?" George mused.

Fred shook his head, smiling. "That's the point." Both hastily stopped talking and assumed casual looks once they noticed Harry. "How's it going Harry?" George asked a bit nervously, though he hid it rather well.

"I was wondering," Harry asked, "if you had given any more thought to the idea of training me." The twins' expressions changed from guarded to maniacal. Looking around to make sure no other little ears were listening, they leaned toward Harry in unison.

"We hoped you'd see the light, Harry," George grinned.

"But you must understand, we can't just let anybody learn from us." Fred and George looked at each other a moment before they nodded.

"You're going to have to prove yourself."

Harry groaned. Just what he needed. "What do you have in mind?"

"Oh nothing," Fred innocently spoke, twiddling his thumbs. "I'm sure you'll do fine."

"All you need to do," George explained, "is get back a small Dungbomb package we misplaced."

Harry narrowed his eyes, suspicious of the supposed ease. "And where might this package be located?"

"Oh, just down in Filch's office. Sitting on his desk in fact." Fred spoke offhandedly, as if he were suggesting that Harry go get some groceries or take a nap. Rolling his eyes and wondering how he would pull this off, Harry told the twins he'd give it a shot. They merely nodded, telling him they'd be waiting.

* * *

As Harry walked down to Filch's office later that day, he began planning what to do. True, it would be much simpler to just put on his Invisibility Cloak and walk in. However, that wouldn't allow him to talk to Filch. He still was intent on using the caretaker as an asset.

Harry walked up to the door of Filch's office and knocked. He could hear the old caretaker inside, walking a bit unsteadily toward the door. When he opened it, Filch saw a hesitant, wide-eyed Harry in front of him.

"What are you doing here," he growled.

Harry, working to maintain his humble and slightly awed look, replied, "I'm sorry, sir. I just wanted to see what you do around here. I also wanted to see Mrs. Norris." He ended looking down at the ground, looking like he was a bit ashamed of some apparent foolishness.

Mrs. Norris, from inside Filch's office, suddenly perked up from her nap. She had smelled something amazing in the general vicinity. Through the opened door, she saw the young male who had helped her from a suit of armor not long ago. The alluring smell seemed to come from him. She bounded over and began rubbing herself on him hands as he bent down to her level.

Using the catnip, Harry thought to himself, had been a wonderful idea. It would be good for practical and pranking purposes in the future.

Mr. Filch simply stared in awe. He recognized the boy now. He was the one who had helped Mrs. Norris before. The boy seemed to like her, and the feeling was definitely mutual. The cat was purring and rubbing herself against the boy, looking happier than he'd ever seen her. Maybe this boy wasn't all bad.

Seeing Filch's change of expression, Harry went for the kill. "I'm sorry, sir. I'll just leave now. Sorry for bothering you."

"No!" Filch was a bit surprised at himself. He had never liked students, and neither had Mrs. Norris. However, she seemed to like this boy, and he always trusted her judgment. "You're fine. I...I don't mind if you want to stay a bit."

"Thanks!" Harry could see that Filch was wavering. "What do you do around here? Is there anything I can help with?"

"Oh." Filch was again surprised. The day had started out so normal, too. Here he was now, talking to a student, and not dreaming up a perfect punishment. "No, no. Appreciate it, but no. I mostly just clean. Boy, eh, what's your name?"

"Harry, sir. Harry Potter." Harry inwardly grinned. This was going brilliantly. The only thing that could make it better would be if…

"**CRASH!"**

The commotion had come from nearby, and Harry could have sworn he heard giggling. Just as he saw Filch's face to contort with rage, Harry shouted that he'd help look for Peeves as he darted to the right. Filch nodded and hurried as fast as he could in the opposite direction.

Once he saw Filch was gone, Harry quietly made his way into the office and snatched the package of Dungbombs. Mrs. Norris seemed to be in her own little happy world and took no notice of him. All he had to do now was go back to the Weasley twins. But that would be too simple.

Harry went over to approximately where the noise had sounded from and soon found a bust of some famous wizard in pieces. Filch, of course, was sure Peeves had rushed away and was searching elsewhere. Harry, however, had noticed that, whenever Peeves did something lately, he just waited invisibly until he could scare someone at the scene of the crime.

Walking over, Harry leaned against a nearby wall for around a minute or two. When he was absolutely sure that Filch was nowhere in the area, he spoke.

"Nice job Peeves. That was quite impressive. Though I normally favor a more stealthy approach." Just as he'd hoped, the poltergeist appeared in front of him. Peeves looked quite disappointed that he hadn't surprised Harry.

"What's an ickle firsty doing here? Someone will catch you and the mess you've made. Or at least that you'll get blamed for," he cackled, trying to scare Harry. It didn't work.

"No, Peeves, I have a proposition for you. I like the way you operate, but you could use a supplier. Someone with access to supplies you can't get on your own."

"Not interested." Peeves crossed his arms and stuck out his chin. "Peeves isn't going to make deals with a firsty."

"I see. So you wouldn't be interested in this Dungbomb I have?" Harry pulled out of one of the Dungbombs from the package and held it out. Peeves tried to grab it, but Harry pulled it away from his grasp.

"Interested. Peeves is interested." Harry smiled. Too easy.

"I'll give you this Dungbomb as a token of my good will," Harry explained. "And to show you that I have a lot of good stuff available. I only ask that you meet me at eight tonight so we can discuss further business. Keep in mind that if you tell anyone about this, I'll deny everything and the deal will be off. Understand?"

"Fine." Peeves snatched the Dungbomb from Harry's outstretched hand. He'd be a fool to decline Harry's offer, especially since just talking had gotten him a Dungbomb that would surely be put to good use.

Harry watched the armed poltergeist float away, no doubt off the ruin Filch's day. It was now only a matter of time.

"I saw that Potter."

Harry whipped around and saw Malfoy smirking at him. The pale boy was accompanied by his two thugs, Crabbe and Goyle. Harry didn't like how things were looking.

"What do you want, Malfoy?"

"I saw you talking to Peeves. What kind of deal did you make with him so he wouldn't throw the Dungbomb at you? I bet you'd get a detention if I told Filch."

"You know, Malfoy, you weren't this brave up in the air without your pet gorillas. Wonder why that is." Harry grinned. Shots fired. Malfoy bristled with rage. Direct hit.

"I can take you on anytime Potter," the blonde growled, but then smiled for some reason. "Tonight, if you're not too scared. I challenge you to a wizard's duel in the Trophy Room at midnight." Malfoy seemed a bit too happy with this idea, so Harry decided to ruin any plans he might have had as well as make sure he'd be there.

"I'm not going on your terms, Malfoy. Corridor near the Charms room. At eleven. And let's up the stakes a bit, shall we? My Nimbus 2000 and your broom, winner take all."

Malfoy's eyes bugged out. How did Potter have a Nimbus 2000? He'd heard his father say some first year was getting exempted from the no broom rule, but Malfoy had assumed his father meant it'd be for him! He thought all his complaining had finally gotten through to his father. And a Nimbus 2000! Malfoy had been planning on just not showing up, but now he had to. When he won, he'd get the best broom on the market. Potter didn't know he only had the latest Cleansweep. Malfoy readily agreed to the new terms.

Harry walked away, trying to hide a malicious grin. Malfoy was going to be in for a surprise. As he walked, he heard a loud, raspy scream echo through the corridor. It seemed Peeves had succeeded. Harry decided to wait a little while before talking to Filch again. Maybe give him some time to clean. And maybe some more for a bath.

* * *

At 10:55 that night, Harry smiled to himself. He could hear Malfoy 'creeping' into the corridor. Soon he saw the Slytherin, accompanied by Crabbe, moving through the shadows. Harry smiled even more as Malfoy moved throughout the corridor, trying to find him. Even if it hadn't been quite dark, Malfoy didn't have a chance. Harry had fallen in love with his newly inherited Invisibility Cloak.

The negotiations with Peeves had gone smoothly and quickly. Peeves, it seemed, was far more willing to negotiate after using the Dungbomb Harry had given him. After seeing the wide assortment of samples Harry had brought, including Dungbombs, fireworks, itching powder, catnip, hair remover, laxatives, hot sauce, and a wide assortment of other mischievous potions and prank materials, Peeves had been willing to agree to almost anything.

Harry had given Peeves the samples as a start, and left him with a few strict guidelines and rules, subject to change if Harry wished. Peeves was not allowed to prank Harry in any way or time, and he was not allowed to prank anyone accompanying Harry. Peeves would refrain from getting Harry in trouble and would also distract anyone if he noticed Harry about to be caught. As a general rule, the younger years were to be kept safe (Slytherins being an exception). Finally, Peeves would be encouraged, though not required, to take part in certain pranks of Harry's, including one happening tonight in less than five minutes.

At about 11:00, after listening to Filch's movements and knowing the caretaker was within earshot, Peeves became visible in the corridor. Coming right above Malfoy, who wasn't bothering to look up, Peeves shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Thanks for new Dungbombs, Malformed! But, Peevsey doesn't need you any more. Have fun smelling like poo!"

With that he began to launch Dungbombs, making sure to directly hit both the Slytherin boys and not throw any where Harry had told him he'd be hiding. He then cackled off, sailing just over the furious, quickly approaching Argus Filch. His part was over, but there was a lot more fun to be had. The deal with Potter had certainly worthwhile. It was worth being restrained a bit if he got supplies and prank ideas like this!

A few hours after cleaning himself off from Peeve's first Dungbomb attack, Filch had been surprised to find that Harry Potter boy knocking at his office door again. The boy had said he'd heard some Slytherins talking about giving some Dungbombs to Peeves. Apparently, they were meeting again with Peeves tonight to give him more. Filch had been very thankful, and he told the boy he'd done good work. He was definitely starting to like the boy.

When he'd entered to corridor where the trade was supposedly taking place, Filch realized he was too late. Peeves already had the Dungbombs. However, the two boys were still there. Dealing with Peeves didn't seem to have worked too well for them. They each looked like they'd taken a Dungbomb point blank. Filch walked up to the two boy, grinning evilly.

"Ohh...You boys are in sooooo much trouble. Maybe, just maybe, Dumbledore will finally let me-"

"Wait!" Malfoy cried. "You don't understand. We were set up! I swear! Harry Potter said-"

"Oh. I see. Very convenient, trying to discredit the one who turned you in. I know all about your little plot. And you're going to pay."

Malfoy tried to protest, but it was no use. The caretaker wouldn't hear a word. Filch took both of them out, leaving to go see Dumbledore to try and get approval for some special punishment.

Harry, under the cloak and perfectly clean, smiled. Everything had worked perfectly. He doubted Malfoy would get punished too badly, maybe a couple detentions (if that, considering his father's position), but the look on his face had been priceless.

Stretching and yawning, Harry got up and started on his way to the Common Room. Even master prank strategists needed their beauty sleep. He'd talk to the Weasley twins tomorrow. He doubted they'd mind him giving Peeves a Dungbomb. They'd understand that it had been for a good cause.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, there you go! Another chapter done. I'll admit this one was a bit more for fun than to continue the plot, but I couldn't resist. Harry's got some new deals, too, so it's not completely plot-less. I don't know how many actual pranks I'll have in this story. I don't want to go overboard or overuse them, though I might do a separate story just for that kind of thing. Anyway, please let me know what you think! I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Until next time! **


	14. Dangerous Creatures

**{Harry Potter is not owned by me. Or you. Or you. Or you. Unless you're J.K. Rowling. That is the sad truth.}**

**Author's Note: Thank you to all for reading my work. Please let me know what you think. Enjoy!**

* * *

As usual, Harry took a very indirect route back to the Common Room that night. He still couldn't get over how amazing his plan against Malfoy had worked out. Things couldn't have gone better! As he wandered, Harry noticed that he was right near the area within the castle that Dumbledore had warned all the students not to go in.

Normally, Harry wouldn't have even considered going near it. While he didn't care much for pointless rules set up by foolish people, which he knew all about with his relatives, he also knew that the staff had been at Hogwarts a lot longer than he had. They had spent a lot more time in the magical world in general. Despite the oddness of the rule, Harry figured that ignorance of its purpose could get him into a lot of trouble.

However, strange things had been going on lately. Hagrid's trip to Gringotts and the not-so-coincidental break-in shortly after left Harry suspicious. If Hagrid had taken something out of Gringotts, one of the safest places for valuables, to give to Dumbledore, there was a good chance that it might now be at Hogwarts. That was where Dumbledore spent nearly all his time, from what Harry could tell.

Harry was still wavering, unsure whether to chance exploration or not, when he heard Filch nearby. The narrow hallway he was in meant that Filch could easily discover Harry simply by bumping into him. The caretaker had not been in a good mood when meeting Malfoy earlier that night, and Harry knew meeting Filch in this place at this late hour would seriously harm their relationship. His choice was made.

Finding the door locked and hearing Filch just around the corner, Harry quickly unlocked it with his wand. He then opened the door as fast as he could, entered, and shut it behind him, just as Filch turned the corner. Harry listened at the door, not relaxing until he was sure Filch was gone. However, as he listened, Harry realized that things weren't as quiet as they should be. Turning, he almost shouted in surprise and fright.

Standing much too close for comfort was an enormous dog. Harry wasn't normally afraid of dogs, but looking at this one he made an exception. Harry got along pretty well with one-headed dogs, but three heads were too many for a single canine.

Looking down, Harry realized he was still wearing his Invisibility Cloak and relaxed a bit. The brute was up on all fours, though, and its three heads were independently looking around. The opening of the door, he reasoned, must have alerted it. As he observed, he saw that underneath the dog, almost like it was being guarded by the beast, was a trapdoor. It would take a lot more than invisibility to make Harry want to try his luck with that, though.

Then the dog started sniffing, and Harry froze. Slowly, it turned all three heads until they were looking straight at Harry. It took Harry a few seconds to regain movement, and by that time the beast had covered most of the distance between them.

Moving faster than he thought possible, Harry whipped the door open and jumped out, locking the door behind him. He had dodged some serious pain with inches to spare. Whatever was under that trapdoor must have been seriously valuable, he thought. Why else would someone commision a giant three-headed dog to guard the entrance? He needed more information, and there were certainly safer places to look for clues than under the belly of a monster like that.

Pausing to let his pulse go down to a normal level, which took quite a while, Harry then hurried back to the safety of the Gryffindor Common Room. He took the quickest, most direct route possible.

* * *

Harry's first two months of school seemed to rush by, especially after his introductory and team Quidditch practices (three times a week) started. When they first began, Wood had made a remark about Harry's good choice of broomstick, to which Harry smugly agreed. Harry picked up the rules and techniques of Quidditch pretty quickly, which impressed his fellow team members greatly. They were all very optimistic about their chances for the season, and Harry couldn't wait for the first game.

Fred and George, who also happened to be the team's Beaters, had welcomed Harry with open arms when he returned with the Dungbombs. They later told him that they hadn't really expected him to succeed; the test was mainly to see how he reacted under pressure and what he did when he was caught. Some of their 'projects' they had claimed were too advanced or mature for Harry, but they had shown and taught him some things. The twins had given him advice regarding pranks, what to do when caught, maintaining anonymity, and moving throughout the castle quickly. They seemed to worship the Marauders, who Harry now knew included his father. Harry hadn't gotten around to telling them yet that he was the son of Prongs.

Peeves and Filch both continued to be useful for Harry. He found it funny that neither had figured out that the other was also on friendly terms with him. Hopefully they wouldn't ever figure it out.

Despite a lot of time and effort put into research, Harry still had no idea what was going on with the giant dog or the Gringotts break in. There simply wasn't enough obtainable information, and he couldn't find anything helpful on his own.

Harry had shared his suspicions and experiences regarding the dog and the break in with Hermione, Ernie, and Terry. They had all been pretty surprised and agreed that the two had to be related. Harry would have thought that between the four of them, who were among the top ten students of their year, they would have been able to at least shed some light onto the mystery.

Each tried to use his or her own talents to get some information, but none succeeded. Hermione had researched in the library for a long time, but she hadn't been able to find anything useful. There wasn't enough information to try and discover the vault contents, and there didn't seem to be a lot known about the giant dog's species. Hermione hadn't found any practical weaknesses or ways of getting past it when she told them, and she hadn't been very optimistic about finding much more since she had gone through almost all the library's relevant books.

Harry had tried to search around the school, but he hadn't found any hints of what was going on. All he'd gotten from Peeves and Filch was that something abnormal was happening. However, Peeves didn't care enough to know, and trying to get details from Filch would be too suspicious.

Ernie, with all his knowledge of the magical world (being a pureblood), had no idea why something like this was happening. Gringotts was supposedly the safest place for items, even though Hogwarts was considered by some a close second. None of the magical artifacts or other valuable item he'd heard of would make sense in this situation. He'd asked his parents in somewhat vague terms, but they hadn't been able to help at all.

Terry had tried subtly asking students and staff. Like Harry, he was very good at getting information and help from people. However, while Harry was decent, Terry was a natural. He didn't just use flattery and innocence like Harry used; in addition, he had a very keen eye for changes in body movement, twitching, and other non-verbal indicators. Usually, even if a person lied, he could determine the actual truth. However, his attempts had been unsuccessful. Almost all the students Terry talked to had no idea of the events taking place. Those that thought things were a bit odd didn't care or didn't put any more thought into the matter. The teachers had unintentionally confirmed that things were taking place, but they were extremely guarded and secretive about what these things were.

Despite all they had done, the four knew very little, if anything at all. Something different was going on within the castle walls. Something very valuable was being guarded, and its protectors were doing everything they could to make sure it was kept secret and safe.

* * *

Harry discovered on Halloween morning that the magical world celebrated the holiday as well. Breakfast consisted of many items containing pumpkins, and the smell of baking pumpkin seemed to permeate the castle.

Some of the classes had a Halloween theme as well. In charms, after practicing levitation with feathers, Professor Flitwick had them attempt to smash pumpkins by levitating and dropping them. Not many students were able to do this, but it was fun to try. Seamus's feather had burst into flames, and his pumpkin exploded without even being lifted an inch. Harry and Terry had both quickly gotten the hang of the charm, and they were the first to eagerly and messily smash their pumpkins. Ron had been having trouble with the charm for both the feather and the pumpkin, so the two decided to help him out. Ron's face when his pumpkin exploded suddenly after being hit by two others was priceless.

Most of the other classes weren't quite as fun as Charms, but a few at least gave some indication that it was Halloween. Both the Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons focused on Halloween-related things. In Potions, Harry acknowledged Snape's ugly bat costume just loud enough for Hermione, Ron, and Neville to hear. Unfortunately, Neville knocked over a jar of ingredients as he chuckled, resulting in much House point deduction and a five minute rant from the ugly bat himself.

Harry did his best to enjoy the day. It was a bit hard at times, however, since it was also the day his parents had been killed. Even though no one said it outright, there were still hints here and there. The best he could do, Harry knew, was just ignore it as best he could. His parents were dead, and his thinking about it couldn't change anything or bring them back. Harry knew they wouldn't have wanted him to waste his childhood mourning them. They had died protecting him, killed by the most powerful Dark wizard of the age. Hopefully that was 'badass' enough for his dad, he thought with a smile.

Things got a bit ugly on the way to dinner. Ron had been in a bad mood after Charms. Hermione had tried to help him with the spell, but he had been too frustrated to accept the aid. In Potions, too, he had been struggling and once again refused help. On the way to the Great Hall, he finally exploded, yelling at Hermione for her nagging and saying he didn't need her help.

Immediately after Ron's outburst, Hermione rushed away. Harry saw tears in her eyes as she hurried away toward the girls' bathroom. Harry glared at Ron, who had the decency to look a little embarrassed. Ron hadn't meant for anyone to get offended. He had just lost control and needed a vent for his pent-up frustrations. It was too late to try and talk to Hermione since dinner was almost ready (and neither Harry nor Ron could actually enter the girls' bathroom to comfort her), so they regretfully continued on their way to dinner.

As they entered the Great Hall, Harry was stunned by the new holiday decorations. There were carved pumpkins lighting up the hall and thousands of live bats roosting or flying. When the food came, it appeared on golden plates. The food was delicious, as usual, and included lots of Halloween treats and pumpkin foods.

Harry was enjoying the meal when all of sudden a terrified Professor Quirrell rushed into the Great Hall. "Troll!" he screamed. "In the dungeons!" After that he fainted, loudly falling onto the floor.

There was silence in the Great Hall for a few seconds before a few students started screaming. After that it was complete pandemonium, with some students rushing the get out while others started to crawl under the tables.

Everyone stopped, though, when three purple fireworks exploded from Dumbledore's wand. With a collective turn, the students turned to face the Headmaster. He ordered everyone to calm down and then instructed the prefects to lead the students back to their dormitories.

As the students were being lead out, Harry suddenly remembered Hermione. She was in the bathroom and didn't know about the troll! Ron was way up in front with his brother Percy, but Harry spotted Terry nearby and rushed over to him.

"We'd better go get her then," was Terry's reply when Harry explained the problem. "We can't have her wandering around with a troll once she comes out."

The two boys ducked out of sight, ditching the groups of students headed for their dorms. When they heard footsteps behind them, they took shelter behind a griffin statue. As Snape briskly walked by, the two boys exchanged glances. Why wasn't Snape with everyone else? As they continued to listen, Terry had a thought.

"You know," he remarked, "that's the exact route you'd take from the Great Hall to get to the Forbidden Corridor. Coincidence?" Harry shook his head and shrugged, intrigued. They didn't have time to think much longer, though, for a horrid odor started filling up their nostrils.

Turning, both boys shrank closer against the statue in fright. Trudging down the corridor was the troll, and it was a horrible sight. The thing was gray and twelve feet tall, and its head looked much too small for its enormous body. Its limbs looked like tree trunks, and in its grasp was a gigantic wooden club. The creature stopped at a doorway, looking indecisive for a few moments, before lumbering inside. Both boys sighed in relief and relaxed until they heard a scream coming from the room the troll had just entered. It was the girls' bathroom!

Harry turned to Terry, his face filled with worry. "Have you got a plan?" he asked the Ravenclaw. Another scream erupted from the girls' bathroom.

"No time for much anymore," replied Terry, "I don't know about trolls enough to plan fighting strategies anyway."

"I'll get Hermione," Harry instructed, standing up and trying to act a lot braver than he felt at the moment. "You cover me. Try and distract the troll long enough for us to get out in one piece. If we lock the door on the way out we may be able slow it down." Terry nodded, and on the count of three they both rushed into the bathroom.

Upon entrance, both could see that things weren't pretty. Hermione was huddled in a corner, her wand on the ground about twenty feet away. The troll was slowly advancing toward her, taking out sinks and toilet stalls as it went. Harry shot a quick glance at Terry, who nodded, before going into a full sprint.

The troll, noticing another creature, started to turn around, but it was too late. Harry charged straight for it and, at the last second, dove underneath the troll's legs. Landing right in front of Hermione, Harry quickly got up and held out his hand. She took it and pulled herself up, still a bit out of it due to both shock and fright.

After Harry dove under its legs, the troll once again tried to turn around. However, as it started to turn, a metal pipe smashed into its skull. Terry, now by the demolished stalls, was using the levitation charm they'd learned in Charms to launch debris at the troll. The troll tried again to move toward Harry and Hermione, but another metal pipe hit it, this time right in the nose. The troll was disoriented long enough for Harry to bring Hermione back toward the door entrance, where Terry quickly joined them. Harry scooped up Hermione's wand on the way and handed it her. She eagerly took it back, happy to have some sort of defense.

"This thing's pretty pissed now, Harry," Terry remarked. "Not sure if we can avoid it just by locking the door. See those two big metal pieces over there?" Terry pointed to two large metal pieces of debris near the stalls. "I'll levitate one and you get the other. If we hit it at the same time, one on each side, we might be able to knock it out." Harry nodded. It was a good idea, and the troll did seem quite angry at the moment.

In sync, the two boys swished and flicked their wands, shouting, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The pieces shook at first, then rose into the air. The troll, which had now fully recovered, started toward the trio. However, it had only taken a few steps before the two pieces of metal collided with its left and right temple simultaneously with a resounding clanging noise.

The troll's eyes rolled back. Its body swayed. Then it fell face first onto the bathroom floor, causing the whole room to shake. The three stood there for a moment in slight disbelief, a bit unsure if the troll was actually out. However, when they were sure the troll was out cold, Harry and Terry jubilantly high fived. Just as a group of teachers walked in.

Professors McGonagall, Snape, and Quirrell had heard the commotion and had come expecting to deal with a troll causing mindless destruction. However, as they looked at the fallen troll and the disheveled students, they realized things had not gone as expected.

"What were you thinking?" Professor McGonagall cried. "You should be in your dormitories! You could've been killed!"

Hermione was speechless, still quite shocked because of the whole ordeal. Harry's mind had drawn a blank, and he couldn't think of a good excuse. Terry, however, saw an opportunity and took it.

"We're sorry, Professor," he said, sounding very ashamed. "We were leaving with the others, but Harry remembered that Hermione had left to go to the bathroom right before we heard about the troll. He told me, and we went to go warn her."

Harry, seeing where Terry was going and very thankful that Terry had found them a possibility of getting away with things, confirmed this. "We never meant to actually take on the troll. When we saw the troll come in and heard her scream, we realized we didn't have time to wait or get help."

Both boys were doing a very good job of conveying embarrassment, shame, and a bit of wonder all into one expression. Hermione was unintentionally playing her part well enough too, though she didn't see what was going on. Snape looked angrier than usual and Quirrell looked more nervous than usual, but McGonagall, if one were observant enough, seemed more relieved than angered at the moment. She was just glad no one had been hurt. She finally gave in.

"Ms. Granger, please return to your dormitory. I'm sure you've had quite the evening. As for you two," she turned to look at Harry and Terry. "While I'm not happy about you two feeling the need to take on a fully grown mountain troll, you did it to protect a friend, and I can respect that. I ask, though, that in the future you refrain from heroic deeds like this unless absolutely necessary. Things could have turned out much, much worse."

The boys nodded. What McGonagall said made sense. Also, they sensed they were on thin ice at the moment and wanted to keep on her good side as much as possible.

"Ten points will be added to each of your Houses for courage and loyalty. Now, please return to your dormitories." With that, McGonagall, Snape, and Quirrell left.

Harry turned to Terry. "Nice one with that excuse. We would've been busted if not for that."

"You know," Terry remarked, "the funny thing is that that was pretty much the truth. Pretty surprising. If we'd lied, trying pin the blame on someone or saying we wanted to take down the troll, she probably would have a lot more ticked."

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "Can't say that'll always be a good tactic though. Most of the time the truth isn't quite so noble for me."

The two laughed. "Wait until Ernie hears about this," Terry chuckled.

"He'll be so jealous," agreed Harry.

"Did you think the teachers seemed a bit on edge? Even after they saw everything was fine?"

"They probably were still stressed about how the troll got there in the first place."

"Yeah. Maybe."

They both walked out and began to walk in opposite directions toward their dorms.

"Hey, Terry?" Harry asked, turning back.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks. I don't think I could've done this alone, or with someone less skilled."

"Hermione's my friend, too, Harry. And so are you. If you ever need help, just ask." Terry paused, pretending to be deep in thought. "However," he added, "give me a bit of a warning next time you want to do anything this hectic. I'll need to write out a will." They both smiled.

"No promises." Harry turned and walked back to the Gryffindor Common Room. Now that he could think though, things did seem a bit off. How did a troll get into the castle in the first place? Weren't there safeguards against that kind of thing? Harry didn't fall asleep for a while that night, thanks to the excitement of the day and the unanswered questions, old and new, floating around in his mind.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, there you go! Another chapter complete. I hadn't given Terry much time in the story before this, so I thought why not have him fight a troll? I hope you guys like the bit of inter-House friendship in the story so far. Hopefully this chapter gave a little more depth to the characters and friendships, especially relating to Terry. They're also now searching for answers, wherever that will lead them. Anyway, please let me know what you think and leave a review. Until next time!**


	15. Game Day

**{I don't own Harry Potter. Insert creative stuff here}**

**Author's Note: Thank you all for taking the time to read my work. It's really great to know that it's getting read by other people and (hopefully) entertaining them. Please leave a review and let me know what you think! Here's the latest chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

It was nearly November, and Quidditch season was just about to start for Harry. It was almost time for his first game, which would be against Slytherin on Saturday. Practices had gotten longer and longer as the hyped day approached, and Harry hadn't had much free time to explore or investigate the school. Wood was determined to make the team as ready as possible, no matter how long that took. He also did as much as he could to ensure secrecy about Harry.

All the teachers knew that Harry was playing. Even if there weren't registrations and paperwork to be filled out for Quidditch, they still had to know that he was allowed a broomstick. It wouldn't do to have Harry questioned about his broomstick everytime he went to Quidditch practice. Not many of the students knew, besides Harry's friends and teammates, but Wood had felt sure Snape would let the Slytherins know what was happening before the match.

"As long as they don't know how good you are," Wood had told Harry, "or what strategies you employ, we should be fine. We're hoping that, even if Slytherin does know about you, they'll underestimate you and be caught off guard."

On Friday, the day before the game, Fred and George had caught two Slytherins suspiciously hanging around the Quidditch pitch right before practice. The twins assured Harry that 'those snakes' were gone and that they'd soon be wishing they hadn't been anywhere near the Quidditch pitch.

At breakfast Saturday morning, Harry was having a hard time staying relaxed. Normally, Harry didn't get nervous. He could usually remain calm and cool, playing a situation out like he was doing it from afar. Quidditch, though was a little less predictable and a little more up close and personal than most of everyday life. It also didn't help Harry's feelings of anxiety to hear Ron and Seamus talking about all the Quidditch injuries they'd heard about, especially regarding Seekers.

Ron had apologized to Hermione at breakfast the morning after the troll incident, which Harry annoyingly found out right after coming back from lacing Ron's robes with itching powder. Thankfully, Ron didn't make the connection. He didn't even seem to suspect anything. He did, however, complain to Harry, Neville, and Seamus numerous times throughout the day about the itching, which he blamed on his robes and Mrs. Norris.

Harry was thinking pessimistic thoughts and staring grudgingly at his uneaten piece of toast when Ernie, Terry, and Hermione walked over.

"Harry," Terry excitedly came up, "remember when we hid from Snape on Halloween and wondered where he was going?" Harry nodded. They had been quite confused about that, and he still had no idea why the Potions Master had gone on his own toward the Forbidden Corridor.

"Well, listen to Ernie!" Terry seemed quite happy about whatever Ernie had to say, but Hermione looked somewhat hesitant. Ernie came up on Harry's other side and leaned toward him, talking in a hushed whisper.

"You've been quite busy with Quidditch lately, so I don't know if you've noticed. Snape's been acting really grumpy lately. Like, more than usual. Also, he tries to hide it, doing a better job some days than others, but he's developed a limp. Almost like he hurt his leg real bad."

Harry nodded. Now that Ernie mentioned it, he could remember a couple of times where Snape had acted or walked a bit differently than usual. He still didn't understand the significance of the this observation, so he gestured for Ernie to go on.

"Well," Ernie continued, "last night I was looking for Snape, since I missed most of the class after being sent to the hospital wing." Another of Neville's potions had exploded, and some (including Ernie) had been sent to the Hospital Wing for treatment. "I wanted to see if there was anything important I missed. When I knocked on the staffroom door, though, nobody answered. I had nudged the door open a bit right before I heard Filch and Snape inside."

Ernie quickly looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping. "They were talking about something getting past something else. When they sat down, I could just see them. Snape rolled up a pant leg and unbandaged his leg, and I could see that his leg was all mangled. Filch was helping him rebandage it. Then Snape said that he couldn't watch out for _all three heads_ at once!"

Harry looked wide-eyed at Ernie. This was huge. He and Terry had seen Snape going in that direction Halloween night, but this confirmed it. Snape had tried to get past the dog Halloween night! They began discussing implications.

While the three boys were ready to pin Snape as a traitor who'd tried to steal the guarded item, Hermione disagreed. "All the staff have to know about it. He was probably just checking up on it, making sure the troll didn't get in or damage it somehow." Harry, Ernie, and Terry tried and failed to convince her of Snape's guilt, giving up when they realized it was a lost cause.

They had been quietly discussing the Forbidden Corridor for a few minutes before Wood came over and half-shouted at Harry to get ready. While Harry's nervousness was more inward, Wood seemed to be visibly shaking. Hermione, Ernie, and Terry all wished Harry good luck before he went off to prepare for the match.

* * *

Even though the game wouldn't start for quite a while, Wood had insisted that everyone needed to be ready to go for the big game. In the locker room, he had given them a long motivational speech about how this team was the best it had ever been and how he knew that they would win. Harry didn't think the speech was too bad, but it seemed that the rest of the team had heard something very similar before. He assumed that was the explanation for their muttering the next phrase Wood would say about five seconds before he said it.

After they had changed into their Quidditch robes and been properly motivated, Harry and the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team walked out of the locker room and onto the field. The stands were packed with students and staff, all eager for a highly anticipated match. Some students even had binoculars to see what was going on better.

When both teams were on the field, Madam Hooch, who was refereeing, spoke to them. She made it clear that she expected a fair game from all of them, and she seemed to be talking to the Slytherins more than the Gryffindors. Harry had a feeling he'd need to keep his guard up at all times or he'd be sent flying off his broom or smashing into something.

The players mounted their brooms, and Harry was quite glad he had lightened the restrictions of the Potter broom for the match. It wasn't much; he didn't want to advertise his unique broom. It could, however, give him just the edge he needed to come out on top.

Madam Hooch blew her whistle and all the broomsticks rose up above the ground. She tossed the Quaffle, which was whisked away by Angelina Johnson, and the match began.

At first, when Harry had just started practicing, he had barely been able to keep track of what was going on. Quidditch was extremely fast-paced, with brooms going at extremely fast speeds and possessions changing very quickly. It was hard to tell what was going on or where the Quaffle was, whether you were in the game or watching from the stands. However, Harry soon got the hang of taking in everything, and soon he could anticipate where players or balls would be.

Because of this and Harry's natural reflexes and quickness, Wood had decided that simply flying around looking for the Snitch like most Seekers did wouldn't make use of Harry's full potential. Harry didn't face any more danger of getting hurt darting within the frey, as long as he could keep track of what was going, than he did sitting lazily on the outside just waiting for a stray Bludger to come. Plus, he covered more space this way, which could make it easier to find the Snitch. He employed this strategy now, darting among the Chasers and Beaters, making sure to distract Slytherin's players as much as he could.

The match had started very well for Gryffindor, mainly due to Angelina's early possession of the Quaffle, which eventually led to a score. Angelina, Alicia, and Katie were doing very well. They were dodging nearly everything the Slytherins came after them with, and soon Gryffindor had scored two goals. Lee Jordan, who was commentating very humorously (though not for the Slytherins or Professor McGonagall), was having a great time. Then the Snitch appeared.

Harry was the first to spot the gold streak, but the Slytherin Seeker was much closer to it. As soon as he noticed Harry darting in his direction, he noticed the Snitch himself. Harry soon caught up with him, but the other Seeker was quite stubborn. He kept cutting Harry off, but Harry finally passed him.

They continued to fly around, following the Snitch, until Harry pulled even more ahead, the Snitch nearly in reach. That was when he noticed the Slytherin Captain, Marcus Flint, moving toward him. There wasn't any reason for him to do so, for nothing else was happening around Harry. Harry had a feeling the Flint was going to try and block him from reaching the Snitch.

Smiling, Harry inconspicuously slowed a bit, letting the other Seeker get a little closer to him. He stopped swerving around, and the Slytherin lined himself up with Harry, trying to draft and get more speed.

When Flint finally came into Harry's path to block him, Harry smoothly and unexpectedly swerved out of the way. The Slytherin Seeker was not quite as lucky. He had quickly gotten used to following right behind Harry, who had been going steadily in a line, and had been more focused on catching up than looking around. He and Flint collided painfully. Unfortunately, Madam Hooch stopped the match for a minute and Harry lost sight of the Snitch in the confusion.

When the match resumed, Flint and the other Slytherins were mad. They started playing a little dirtier. Not enough to get them in trouble, but certainly enough to give them an edge and to annoy the Gryffindors. Slytherin scored once, then again, and soon they had pulled ahead. Harry was darting around again, looking for a sign of the Snitch, when something unexpected happened.

"_Malicious Spell Detected. Source: 100 feet South-West. Please stop spell or move out of range."_

Harry had heard the voice, but it had sounded like it came from within his head and not from his surroundings. It had sounded fake, almost like an automated phone call. He looked around, flying a little bit out of the chaos, but he saw nothing. Suddenly, his broom vibrated slightly and he heard the voice again.

"_Malicious Spell has breached outer defenses. Source: 150 feet South-West. Shields at 95%. Please move broomstick to a more secure area."_

Harry realized that the voice was coming from his broom! Someone was trying to curse it! Looking in the direction the broom indicated, he realized the source of the curse was coming from the staff section. As he looked, he felt a sharp pain in his head right where his scar was. This hadn't happened much, but it had started happening since Harry got to Hogwarts. And it did not seem like a coincidence.

Harry was unsure of what to do or where to go, and he was just about to fly over to Madam Hooch when he spotted the Snitch. It was a long way off, but he had a shot and he knew he needed to get the Snitch. Gryffindor was down, and a comeback from the Chasers didn't look likely. As Harry sped toward the Snitch, his broom started wobbling and vibrating, more severely with each passing second. The voice reminded him occasionally of his dropping defenses, which were soon down to a mere five percent.

Harry's hand was almost touching the Snitch when the broom's defenses gave way. Harry's broomstick started bucking, and he felt like he was riding an angry bull. The Snitch was moving farther and farther away, and Harry knew what he needed to do. He wasn't too high up, so it was feasible.

Bracing himself for a second, Harry suddenly leapt off of his broomstick, using its bucking to maximize his jump. However, he overcompensated. As he sailed toward the Snitch, Harry realized he had jumped to far. The Snitch was right in front of his face, not his hands! Quickly, just as he was reaching the ground, Harry opened his mouth and pushed the Snitch into it with one of his arms. He had just enough time to brace himself before he landed on the ground. When he landed, he saw that his broom had stopped bucking and was slowly descending down to meet him on the ground.

Thunderous cheers erupted from the Gryffindor stands when Harry spit the Snitch out into his hand and lifted it up. Fred and George were laughing, and Wood looked like he might shed tears of joy. They had won! Gryffindor had beaten Slytherin.

Harry was a bit disoriented from the ordeal, and soon he was whisked away with Hermione, Ernie, and Terry to Hagrid's hut, where the giant man was making the group some strong tea.

The moment they sat down, Hermione anxiously asked, "Someone was cursing your broom, weren't they?" When he nodded, she shook her head, troubled. "I could see it in your broom's movements as you got closer to the Snitch. When I looked around, trying to see what would cause it, I saw Snape staring right at you and moving his lips."

"We encountered Hermione while she was advancing toward the staff section." Ernie explained. "We agreed to help her distract Snape, and the three of us hurried together to stop your broom troubles."

"You hurried so passionately that you knocked Quirrell flat on his face," Terry added, smirking.

"Anyway," Hermione continued, "we managed to light Snape's robes on fire for a second, distracting him long enough to break the curse just after you made that reckless dive. I still don't understand why he'd do that, though."

"I'll bet it's because we know too much!" Terry exclaimed. "He's scared because we know what he's doing, so he tried to silence us for good!"

"Yeah!" Ernie agreed. "After you guys saw him go off to try and get past the three-headed dog, which I confirmed after seeing him with his leg mangled, he decided-"

"Hang on now," Hagrid interrupted worriedly. "How do you lot know 'bout Fluffy?"

"Fluffy?" Hermione asked. "That...thing...is named _Fluffy_?!"

"Course! He's mine. Bought him from some Greek I met in a pub a year or so ago. Lent him to Dumbledore to guard the Stone."

The group exchanged glances. Hagrid clearly wasn't fully aware of the information he was spilling. They were hesitant to talk, much less interrupt, for fear of letting him realize what he was doing.

"So," Terry ventured, "Snape tried to get past Fluffy. When he couldn't, and when he knew we were onto him, he tried to get rid of us, first with the troll and then with the broom curse. We've got to figure out to stop this."

"Now stop," said Hagrid. "There's no reason for Snape to try and kill a student. Listen here. You lot need to just stop with this and forget it all. This is dangerous stuff. You forget about the dog and what it's doing there. That's between the staff, Dumbledore, and Nicolas Flamel."

Try as she might, Hermione couldn't keep a straight face, and Hagrid realized that he'd been talking to much. Looking from one excited face to the other, Hagrid sighed.

"You all ought to ashamed, taking advantage of an old simpleton like me. Mark my words though. I just want you safe. Stay out of this."

Harry appreciated Hagrid's concern for their well-being, but he couldn't make any promises.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, there you go! Another chapter complete. It's a bit shorter than some of the recent ones, but I wanted Christmas to be its own chapter. That's going to be long enough on its own. Anyway, please leave a review! I always appreciate you guy's input, whatever it may be. Until next time!**


	16. A Very Merry Christmas

**{I do not own Harry Potter. 'Tis not my destiny.}**

**Author's Note: This story recently passed 100 reviews and it has over 400 followers! Thank you all for reading it. I had no idea this many people would like it. Anyways, thanks for being here. Keep it up and maybe it'll reach 200 and 800. Who knows? Please leave a review and let me know what you think. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

Christmas spirit was alive and well in Hogwarts, and Harry was simply ecstatic. This would be the first Christmas he'd ever spent without the Dursleys. Even if he didn't get a single present, he still wouldn't have to listen to Dudley complain about how there were only fifty presents under the tree or watch the ugly pig break half of them before dinner. For the first Christmas, Harry would actually be able to celebrate the holidays with people he liked (and who liked him as well). Harry knew without a doubt that this Christmas would by far exceed all his past ones.

Harry wasn't the only one who was excited. All the students were excited for a break. Some part of knowing that the holidays had nearly arrived brought an unexplainable magic to Hogwarts that was much different than the usual sort. The corridors were chilly, and the dungeons were downright freezing, but there was always a fire blazing in the Common Room to keep things in there warm and cozy.

Malfoy had loudly commented in Potions class about the holidays, lamenting about how sad it was that not everyone had a place to go where people wanted them. He was mockingly staring at Harry as he said it. Harry had merely smiled. If only Malfoy knew.

Malfoy had been constantly trying to anger or hurt Harry ever since Gryffindor's Quidditch win and the incident with the Dungbombs. He'd first tried to make jokes about Harry's flying, but when he realized everyone was impressed with Harry's skills he went back to making taunts about Harry's family. So far, to his annoyance, he had been unable to rattle Harry in even the slightest way.

Harry was one of the few people not going home for the holidays. Terry and Ernie were going home, and so were most of the Gryffindors, including Hermione, Neville, Seamus, and Dean. In fact, the only people who were staying, or at least the ones Harry knew, were the Weasleys: Percy, Fred, George, and Ron. Even if he could hang out with the twins for a while, Harry hadn't been expecting much to do during Christmas. Then Gringotts contacted him.

_Dear Mr. Potter_

_You were informed upon your first visit to Gringotts that as a Potter you would have access to Potter Manor. However, it turns out that this is much easier said than done. Knowing you were hoping to visit soon, some inspectors were sent to assess damages and start some preparation. Potter Manor has no House Elves; all were killed in the First Wizarding War. It was also damaged during an attack. When the inspectors arrived, however, they were denied entry. Your race's Ministry of Magic, it seems, had put many so-called protections upon the estate. While these do indeed keep unwanted visitors away, they also succeed in preventing entry for anyone, including yourself. Whether or not this was the intent is unclear. We have looked into the matter, and it seems that the spells and wards cannot be removed by us. We have tried contacting your Ministry, but they have rudely ignored us. _

_Because of these so-called protections, the only means of entrance is by a secure, direct-to-home Portkey. (If you were unaware, a Portkey is a method of instant transportation by wizards. The user is teleported to the set destination upon touching the Portkey.) There are only two remaining in existence for Potter Manor at this time, and both require a Potter for their use. The first is the ring of Lord Potter, which has served the lord for centuries to quickly travel to his home. Unfortunately, you cannot use the ring until you assume the title of Lord Potter. The second is a Snitch. However, there is a problem with this Portkey. It was meant to be a more temporary Portkey, and once activated it will only work for about a week. It will function as many times as needed within the week, but when the week is over it will be useless. The Snitch does have a different advantage, though. By splitting it, opening it up, and leaving one half at your school, you can return there once you are done at the manor. This would allow you to travel back to school after visiting Potter Manor instead of being stranded there. These listed are the only two ways to Potter Manor in existence, and more cannot be created as of now. We have delivered the Snitch Portkey to you. We had hoped to duplicate it somehow, making prolonged usage a possibility, but our efforts failed. _

_Gringotts_

After reading the letter and finding the Portkey, Harry knew exactly what he wanted to do. There weren't many people he would spend time with at Hogwarts right now anyway. Plus, he'd wanted to go to Potter Manor ever since he heard about it. Now would be a great time to do so. He had missed the deadline for leaving Hogwarts, but the letter had said he could use the Portkey as much as possible. He could simply travel back and forth, splitting his holiday both at Hogwarts and Potter Manor! There was bound to be some great stuff there.

* * *

The first day of the holidays, Harry woke up bright and early. He didn't have to worry about waking anyone, since only he and Ron were in the room and Ron could sleep through just about anything. He then went down for breakfast, which had a much larger serving window than when classes were happening. That way, early risers and students who slept late could both get a nice breakfast. When he was done with breakfast, Harry quietly snuck to the Phantom Room. In there, he knew, no one would notice him appearing and disappearing and no one would move the Snitch half.

Taking a deep breath, Harry stood in the middle of the room and opened the Snitch. Supposedly, he would only leave when he grasped the wings, according to some instructions engraved upon it. He dropped the removed portion onto the floor and hesitantly grasped the wings of the Snitch. Harry felt a tugging sensation behind in his torso before being whisked away.

A bit disorientated, Harry opened his eyes and found himself in an entirely different place. He certainly wasn't in the Phantom Room, or even Hogwarts, anymore. The travel time had been almost instantaneous, and Harry wished he could travel everywhere with this much ease. The slight, initial discomfort was definitely worth the efficiency of the travel.

The room Harry was in looked quite run down. It was blanketed in a layer of dust, and it looked like no one had been in it for many years. Furniture was knocked over or laying around in the room. Some of it had been broken, and pieces were strewn about. It looked as if a fight had happened in here some time long ago.

Even though it was quite old and hadn't been taken care of or cleaned in a long time, Harry still could see that it would have been very nice. It was very large (not quite Great Hall large, but certainly big enough to fit many people) and there was a large table. There were also a lot of chairs around the room. Harry guessed that he was standing in the old dining hall of Potter Manor.

Moving onward, Harry continued to look around. He was glad that he had gone early and during the daytime. With all the dust, cobwebs, and misplaced furniture, Potter Manor would seem somewhat eerie. It seemed that the "protections" keeping everyone out were quite successful. Harry was pretty sure no one had set foot anywhere within the building for at least a decade.

Though it was tiny compared to Hogwarts, Potter Manor was still immensely large compared to other places Harry had been. It had three main floors, as well as a tower and an attic. Harry had suspicions that there was a basement, but he hadn't been able to find anything. For the rest of the day, Harry explored as much as he could before going back to Hogwarts in the evening for food and relaxation. The next few days followed a similar pattern.

* * *

On Christmas morning, Harry awoke early as usual, ready for another day of exploring Potter Manor. However, as he got out of bed, he noticed that things were different than normal. At the foot of his bed, considerably large in size, was a stack of wrapped presents! Harry had almost forgotten that it was Christmas, and he hadn't expected any presents. He bent down, examining each present before unwrapping it, savoring each second.

The brown, clumsily-wrapped package from Hagrid contained a wooden, hand-carved flute. The flute, though it looked a bit rough, actually sounded pretty good, especially considering that it had come from the creator of rock cakes. Hagrid was much better at carving than he was at cooking. Ernie and Terry had both given Harry plenty of Wizard candy, including Chocolate Frogs and Every Flavor Beans. Hermione had given him some Muggle candy, including some of the sugar-free variety. Harry was glad she had given him some normal candy at least and realized his childhood could have been even worse if the Dursleys been dentists. Harry realized that he had forgotten to get gifts for his friends, and he felt especially bad since they had remembered him. He decided that he'd get some candy for them as soon he could. He also decided to buy each of them something really nice the next year. He could certainly afford it.

Harry was just opening his gift from the Dursleys, who had so _generously_ given him fifty pence, when Ron came in.

"Hey Harry! Merry Christmas! I got a ton of candy this year! Hey, what's that?" Ron asked, looking at Harry's latest gift. When Harry told him that it was actually Muggle money, Ron was speechless. Ron was so intrigued that Harry gave it to him, amused by Ron's reaction. As he handed it to Ron, the redhead looked down at a lumpy package and groaned.

"I think my mom sent you that one. Me, Fred, and George have mentioned you in our letters, and I think she went into top "over-mothering" gear."

Mrs. Weasley, it turned out, had given Harry a green, hand-knitted sweater and some fudge. After Ron had seen the sweater and muttered something about Harry's being a lot nicer than his, he left to go talk to Fred and George.

Looking down at his diminished stack, Harry saw that he only had one more gift left. Harry opened up the package and discovered an Invisibility Cloak. Looking it over, Harry noticed that this one seemed a bit lesser in quality than the one he already had. He couldn't pinpoint any exact problems with it, but it just seemed inferior. Harry noticed a note had fallen out. Harry bent over and picked up the note, which read, "Your father lent this to me before he died. Now I entrust it to you. Make good use of it."

The note was unsigned, but Harry had a feeling it was from Dumbledore. His father had mentioned in his letter to Harry that he'd given Dumbledore his spare cloak. Regardless of the donor or quality, though, Harry now had another Invisibility Cloak, which he could think up quite a few uses for.

Harry decided to stay in Hogwarts all day for Christmas. He didn't want people to become suspicious of his whereabouts, and the castle was enjoyable. The paintings were in a festive mood. The staff were in happy moods too, though Harry figured Filch wouldn't be very happy when he discovered Peeves's latest joke. Using red and green spray paint, which no one (except for Harry) had any idea how he'd gotten, the poltergeist had artistically graffitied a Christmas tree and a pair of ornaments onto very unfortunate places of each suit of armor. Many of the male paintings and even a few female ones (to their immense embarrassment) were similarly decorated.

* * *

After Christmas, Harry made sure to use the temporary Portkey as much as possible with the time he had left. While other students remaining in the castle were sitting around bored or trying to find pointless things to do, Harry found himself as busy as he had been before the holidays. Every day was full of exploration and discovery. Harry had explored over thirty rooms, many of which were bedrooms or old closets. Some rooms he hadn't been able to enter for some reason, and others he sensed were more than they appeared. The grounds of Potter Manor were large as well. Harry hadn't gone out of the house; he didn't want to be locked out or get in danger. However, from what he could see through windows, they were quite extensive. There weren't any other houses in sight, but Harry had made out a large garden, a lake, a forest, and even what might have been a Quidditch field. The most rewarding discovery Harry had made was the library. He had found it accidentally when he knocked over a lone, boring-looking book standing on a shelf inconspicuously in the corner of the large sitting room. The shelf had slid aside to reveal a secret passageway leading the a library even larger than that of Hogwarts.

Unlike the rest of the manor, the library still looked quite nice. Harry guessed that lots of preservation charms had been put on the room to keep the books in good shape. Harry had been looking around aimlessly when he stumbled upon a magical book finder. It had seemed like a normal book when Harry first saw it, lying open on a podium. However, when he looked at it, Harry saw that it was blank except for a heading on the top: Search for Desired Authors, Topics, Key Words, Time Periods, etc. by Writing on Page.

Seeing a quill nearby, Harry had a sudden inspiration. He, Hermione, Ernie, and Terry had tried and failed to dig up any information about Nicolas Flamel. They had searched and searched through many time periods and genres, but there was no mention of the man. They had come to the conclusion, after days of searching, that it was a lost cause. This man either wasn't famous enough to get written about, or the books he was in were too rare. Harry hadn't shared his suspicions with the others, but he'd also had a feeling that any books the school library might have owned were being kept out of student hands to protect the secret. However, Potter Manor seemed to have a large collection of books and there were no staff members here to remove any. Taking the quill, Harry wrote on the page the name of Nicolas Flamel.

As soon as Harry had finished writing and had put down the quill, the fresh ink disappeared, soaking into the paper. Harry was about to write the name again when he noticed a few books start to float off the shelves. More and more moved, rising slowly out of place and floating over toward Harry, until there was a stack almost as tall as Harry himself standing right next to the book finder.

Looking at the first book on the stack, Harry smiled like a hunter who had found his prey. The book, which looked quite old, was titled, "Thanks To A Stone: A Biography of Sorcerer's Stone Creator Nicolas Flamel (500th Year Edition)." Harry skimmed that book and a few others just to be sure, but soon he was certain. A lot of things fit together. Nicolas Flamel was the creator of the one and only Sorcerer's Stone. The stone was currently at Hogwarts, protected by Fluffy. It was being protected from Voldemort's followers, and maybe even the Dark Lord himself if some part of him still existed, who would surely love to get their hands on an object that could practically bring immortality.

Now that Harry knew what was going on, he wasn't quite sure what to do about it. At the moment he could be content, knowing he'd finally solved a big mystery. However, the connections to Voldemort and the previous danger he'd been in, as well as Snape's role in everything, kept Harry from being completely satisfied or at ease.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, there's the latest chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. Sorry for the long delay, I've been having both a busy schedule and bit of writer's block lately. Sadly, I probably won't be updating for a little while. Anyway, please let me know what you think and leave a review. Until next time!**


	17. Mirror, Mirror

**{There once was a child name ******** who was disappointed with HP. He didn't own it but he wrote fanfiction fic. Hint hint that child was me. To the tune of the Hedwig theme I in fact do not own. I do not own any direct or partial quotes from the first book or any other. I own pretty much nothing except Barikepltee the Headless Leprechaun. He was edited out, though, for obvious reasons. }**

**Author's Note: First off, let me just say I'm sorry for not updating, but it wasn't entirely my fault. I mean, who knew deleting the 'reset password' email was a bad idea? Hindsight is 20/20, they say. Anyway, I'm back for the moment, so here's another chapter. The end is now in sight, though I'm glancing pretty far ahead. Enjoy!**

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Ever since Harry's informative visit to Potter Manor, school life had become even more complicated. He had immediately told Hermione, Ernie, and Terry the new information (though he decided not to reveal the source), and they all agreed that the item guarded by Fluffy was undoubtedly the Sorcerer's Stone. However, this answered question brought with it many more. Why had the Stone been moved from a bank to a school? Even if the school offered more protection, it would almost certainly put the students at risk. Dumbledore's poorly worded warning seemed to endanger students, taking advantage of their curiosity to lure them into danger.

Snape's presence didn't make sense. No matter who was in charge of the staff, a teacher with his obvious bias and authority misuse would have been sacked long ago. Supposedly the Headmaster was now in charge of staff, but that didn't mean others could be influential. Snape wasn't just here as a teacher. He was involved with something else. Something that was keeping his position at Hogwarts safe. Whether the position was for good or ill, no one knew.

"You can't just assume that every single person is evil," Hermione had pointed out from the start. "People do what they think is right or at least in their best interest. Just because Snape and Dumbledore's actions appear illogical, or in Snape's case malevolent, doesn't mean that's how they truly are. We don't know the full story yet. We could be grossly misinterpreting the little bit of data we have."

"That being said," Terry countered, "people with lots of authority have to be responsible with it. They have to protect those who serve them. Aside from the whole thing of endangering students and moving the stone, look at the troll. First off, it should never have gotten in. Hogwarts has vast and powerful wards. It was no accident, and it took somebody pretty skilled and relatively high up to get that thing in undetected."

"And even if you overlook the appearance of the troll," Ernie continued, "Even you, Hermione, cannot argue with this: Why were we sent to our Common Rooms? For Gryffindors and Ravenclaws, the idea isn't as preposterous, but I'm a Hufflepuff! Where is our Common Room? Near the dungeons! Same with Slytherin! Where was the troll supposedly? In the dungeons! The Great Hall of Hogwarts has been used for shelter in the past. Any logical person would have kept the students where they were: all in one place, surrounded by powerful staff, and in an area of relative safety. So what happens? We're all split up, led by our prefects, and shipped to our Common Rooms which might be exactly where said threat is sitting! Call it what you want, but to me that's negligence and poor thinking. That is most likely the kindest, best case scenario."

As much as she wanted to, Hermione couldn't dispute anything about that. Dumbledore had acted unwisely. If things had gone differently that evening, students could have died. She wanted to respect her teachers, but she also had to think for herself, which was something the magical world as a whole didn't seem altogether too good at.

"What it comes down to is this," Harry reminded them. "For some reason, the Flamels, extremely old and powerful people, gave the Stone to Dumbledore to be protected. Don't ask me why, I don't know. Personally, I think it might be a fake just to lure Voldemort in. I mean, come on? Elixir of Life? If Voldemort's around at all, he's almost certainly now going to try and steal it. We know this: we're the only people we can trust. The more information we get, the better, but we can't rely on other students and staff to protect the stone because things around here are about as fishy as they get."

The others nodded. As much as they hated to admit it, there wasn't a way to sugar-coat it. They needed to find out the whole story. Only then would they be able to either rest easy, knowing they were safe, or otherwise prepare for defense.

Harry had lately taken to late night strolls through the castle. It had begun not-so-innocently with his trying to discover the secrets of the castle. He still wanted to learn as much as could, admittedly, but that wasn't his main motivation anymore. There was something about walking through the castle at night, shrouded with an Invisibility Cloak, that made everything seem simpler. There were no annoying students or staff to get in his way. The halls weren't filled with endless chatter. Things were calm and quiet, providing the perfect environment to simply walk and think. Harry didn't sleep as much as other students. Nighttime was too valuable to waste the whole time sleeping. Some of his best ideas had sprouted while walking aimlessly throughout the castle.

However, just because exploring wasn't first on the list didn't mean it wasn't on the list at all. If he noticed a peculiar statue or a new room, Harry couldn't help but peer inside. On this night, as he was wandering, he came across what appeared to be a classroom that had not been used for many years. Cautiously, Harry entered.

As with most classrooms, this one had many desks and chairs piled in a corner collecting dust. However, this room had something others did not. Standing almost as high as the ceiling, framed in gold and bearing inscriptions of a foreign language, was a giant mirror. Closing the door behind him, Harry removed the Cloak and went in for a closer look. Peering into the reflection, he almost jumped back in surprise. He saw his reflection of course, but the Harry in the mirror was not in the same place he was.

"I was wondering if you'd ever come here."

Harry jumped, startled by the low voice that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He glanced around the room, looking for a speaker. "Who's there?" he called. "Show yourself!"

Above one of the desks, the air seemed to glow and swirl. Moments later, Harry recognized the form of Albus Dumbledore sitting on the desk. His voice hadn't been like that when he gave his speech, Harry thought. He felt stupid for not recognizing the voice of the Headmaster. Hopefully Dumbledore knew nothing of his and his friends' doubts and discoveries.

"You don't have to worry," Dumbledore assured Harry, looking amused. "I won't tell Mr. Filch about your adventures this time." Clearly he had misinterpreted Harry's expression of worry.

"I'm sorry, sir," Harry stammered. "I was just...that is...I was thinking-"

"Perfectly natural," Dumbledore chimed in. "If I received a new Invisibility Cloak, I wouldn't be able to resist trying it out either."

It was funny, Harry thought to himself, that Dumbledore didn't know what Harry did. Dumbledore thought he was being mysterious, leaving Harry to wonder about how the Headmaster knew about the Cloak. In reality, Harry knew all about Dumbledore's borrowing of his father's Cloak. Even better, the old man had been given an inferior, cloak, not the one he wanted! Harry played along, though, letting the Headmaster have his fun.

"I suppose you're wondering about this," Dumbledore continued, gesturing to the mirror. "It is known as the Mirror of Erised. I assume you've looked in it and seen that things aren't the same as on our side?"

Harry nodded, though he was unsure if that was truly a good idea. No need to give Dumbledore information that could later prove harmful.

"Let me explain to you what it does," Dumbledore got off from the desk and took a step closer to Harry. "The happiest man on earth would see nothing different in the reflection. He would see himself as he was, which would be all that he desired to be."

Harry did his best to follow, but Dumbledore wasn't the best at explaining things. The Headmaster saw his confusion, and elaborated.

"This mirror shows us nothing more or less than the deepest desires of our hearts. For the weak, it shows them with power. For the fearful, it shows them conquering that which terrifies them. And for the lonely," Dumbledore gave Harry a meaningful glance, which made Harry feel uncomfortable, "it shows them surrounded by friends and followers."

"The mirror will be moved from this location very soon. I advise you not to go looking for it," Dumbledore warned. "Men have wasted away, unwilling to tear their eyes off the things they desire most. Sometimes we accept a substitute to the real thing, Harry, for we believe that true happiness is unattainable and that lies and false hope are all we have."

Dumbledore was very close to Harry now. Harry hadn't even noticed the man's movement, but now here he was almost within reach, whereas before he had been on the other side of the room. Harry made the mistake of looking through the halfmoon glasses and into the Headmaster's eyes. When later thinking about it, Harry noted that he couldn't easily describe what he had seen in words. Dumbledore's pupils had seemed a mass of overwhelming colors while at the same time being void of any color. The had seemed twinkling and bright while also seeming as black as the darkest night. Harry had seen vast intelligence and life as well as the cold, unseeing stare of one lost to the world.

In a wavering voice much deeper than the Headmaster had originally sounded, Harry heard, "What did you see, Harry?"

Harry almost blurted out the sight he had seen. He nearly told the Headmaster how he had seen himself, seated upon a large chair overlooking the wizarding world. Things were much better, and the people both loved and feared him. He had brought the magical world into a time of peace and prosperity not seen in countless generations before. Voldemort was gone, and Muggle-hate was a thing of the past. On one side stood his family, his mother's eyes shining with love and his father's with pride. On the other stood those worthy enough to be called his friends. They were few in number, but they had earned his respect and trust countless times. With all his accomplishments and the company of people he cared about, the Harry in the mirror was content. He not only had a past, but a future to be strived for as well.

Something was pushing Harry mentally, urging him to speak of what he had glimpsed in the mirror. He wanted to tell Dumbledore of his sight, of his scar pain, of his friends and enemies. He wanted to tell Dumbledore all he knew and suspected of what was really going on with him, the Stone, and with Snape. However, something resisted.

One small corner of Harry's mind resisted these foreign urges. Why should Harry reveal this to the old man? Why should all his secrets be laid out? Why should he tell everything to a man he had never truly met before? It was like a music box in the middle of a hurricane, but it made Harry pause.

Dumbledore was looking at Harry intensely, and Harry knew he couldn't lie. Something was preventing him from lying. However, Harry knew he could resist enough not to tell the whole truth. He could say something true, but something that made Dumbledore think differently about him. Harry wasn't a threat or a game-changer, looking to change the world. He was a lonely boy who wanted to be loved and maybe be reunited with those that had once loved him. In that moment, Harry's answer came to him.

"I...I saw other people sir," Harry stammered, carefully choosing his words. "I was surrounded by my friends and...my family. I saw my mother and father standing next to me."

Dumbledore turned to glance at the mirror, and the pressure on Harry's mind ceased abruptly. Harry quickly looked down, away from the mesmerizing eyes of the Headmaster.

"If it's fine with you, sir," Harry added, moving to pick up his cloak while avoiding eye contact, "I think I'd best get back to bed. I've had plenty of adventure for today."

"I believe you have, Harry," Dumbledore answered. "I bid you goodnight."

"Sir, if I may ask, what do you see when you look in the mirror?" Harry was nearly out the door and too far to make eye contact again, so he looked the man in the face.

"Me?" Dumbledore smiled. "I see myself holding a nice pair of socks. One can never have too many socks, you know."

As Harry donned the Cloak and pushed open the door, he lamented the fact that while he hadn't been able to lie to Dumbledore, it was clear that the Headmaster had no such problems when talking to Harry.

As he made his way back to the Common Room, Harry heard voices. Quietly walking over, he could hardly believe what he saw. Snape had Professor Quirrell cornered, and he looked angry.

"Yes, I thought we'd meet at this hour so that we're safe from potential eavesdroppers," Snape icily droned, "After all, we don't want students finding out about the Sorcerer's Stone."

Quirrel was trembling even more than usual, and he seemed ready to bolt at the next available moment.

"Have you found a way through the gamekeeper's mutt?" Snape sneered.

"I...I d-d-don't know what you're t-t-talking a-a-a-about!" Quirrell stammered.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," Snape answered, his eyes glowing with menace in the torchlight. "We'll meet again soon, Quirrell. By then, we'll see if you've decided where your loyalties lie.

Snape flung his cloak aside, gliding away like like demon or a monstrous bat. Soon he was engulfed in the darkness, leaving Quirrell to tremble in fear. Deciding that he'd seen enough, Harry invisibly left the stuttering professor. He wasn't sure he was comfortable telling his friends about the Mirror and Dumbledore, but they definitely needed to hear about Snape's latest exploits!

* * *

**Author's Note: It's been far too long, but here it is! Another chapter! And, as I said before, the end is in sight! Unless things drag out, I doubt there will be more than five more chapters or so. Instead of making this a huge, multi-hundred-thousand-word story, I'm splitting it up into different years. Just warning you know, especially after this chapter, that not all questions will be answered in this story. And the ones that do will bring about new ones! Of course, we've got a while before that, but I just wanted to let you guys know that there's more in store. Thanks for reading, and thanks especially for your patience. Again, I know it's been a while, and I'm sorry about that. Don't forget to let me know how you like the story/chapter. I love hearing from you guys! Hopefully I can soon get more time to write and post the next chapter. Until next time!**


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